Chapter Three
"I'm still not sure why you dragged me here, Kagato-dono. I'm not sure that Juraian high society is the place I most want to be at the minute, and I don't want to drag you down."
Kagato cast his companion an amused smile, shaking his head slowly as he took in the man's appearance.
"You have been at the Academy far too long, Mikamo-kun." He observed. "I can remember a time when parties and balls like this were the highlight of your time on Jurai - dancing with pretty girls and listening to your father boast about his talented, accomplished sons. I wonder at you, sometimes. Has vocational work really changed you so much?"
"No, not really." Mikamo looked rueful, spreading his hands. "I never enjoyed those things as much as people believed I did. But I know better than to lose face in front of my father. And he was so keen then that I marry one of your court belles, I never thought to put a foot out of place."
"Ah, yes." Kagato leaned back against the expensive velveteen curtains that hung along the walls, giving the wood-panelled room a warm and expensive feel amid the other finery. "Whatever did happen to the Lady Matori, Mikamo? You're turning into a regular heartbreaker, all things being considered. The last time we met, I really thought you were set to marry her. And then I hear you're off to the Academy and she's no longer involved in your life. No wonder you don't want to dance. You've obviously been bitten once too often."
Mikamo laughed, shaking his head.
"You know very well that Lady Matori married a cousin of yours, and I was very happy about the arrangement." He said frankly. "She was very pretty, but she didn't have a thought in her head beyond pretty dresses and expensive perfume. I would have gone insane, in her company day by day. No, Kagato-dono. I really don't think that was the match made in heaven you pretend it to be. So stop teasing me, all right? You didn't bring me here to play games with my mind."
"No, I did so to drag you out of your black moods." Kagato said frankly. "I don't understand this lure that women seem to have over men when they get to our age, you know. First Yosho, now you. Smitten by unsuitable women, the both of you. You ought to give the whole matter a miss and follow my example. You don't need to succumb to that particular tradition, after all. You're only the third son. You don't need to marry and honestly, the work I have planned for you over the next few months should be enough to occupy all your thoughts, not just some of them."
"So you said before, and it intrigued me." Mikamo admitted, as a man dressed in serving costume passed them bearing drinks. He paused, holding his tray out to Kagato as he bowed his head and Kagato smiled at him, taking two glasses and handing one to his friend. Mikamo took it, taking a sip, and then pulling a face.
"The drinks don't get any better at these things, do they?" He observed. Kagato shook his head, amusement flickering in his golden eyes.
"You're always refreshing company. I like that." He said appreciatively. "And no. But they help to cope with the boredom factor - and listening to my Grandfather proclaim some knight or other lord a hero and all of that really rots the brain. That's why they make everyone dance and drink first. By the time Grandfather hobbles up onto his stage, most of the audience will be insensible or exhausted. It's an easy way to prevent a riot...the Emperor is not a foolish man."
Mikamo choked on his drink at this, almost spitting his mouthful out across the impeccably polished floor, and Kagato chuckled.
"I'm sorry." He said unrepentantly. "But you know it's true."
"And I know that you rarely do anything other than speak your mind, Kagato-dono." Mikamo recovered himself, eying the contents of his glass ruefully. "I should be more used to your company by now."
"I think it's high time you dispensed with all the false pageantry." Kagato took a hold of his arm, pulling him more deeply into the swirling crowds as he caught sight of his uncle the Crown Prince just entering the hall from the furthermost entrance. "Come on. This way, or Uncle Azusa will have some boring conversation with us about your family and how your father's estates are on Seniwa. Besides, with your weakness for pretty girls, you'd probably be happier at this end of the hall. Lord Hirata has three very beautiful daughters - if you believe him on the subject - and he's always looking to beg, bribe or buy his way into a richer family than his through one of them."
"You are completely incorrigible sometimes." Mikamo warned him. "Someone will hear you. And what do you mean, false pageantry? I didn't think there was any ceremony between old friends."
"Precisely." Kagato agreed, glancing across the room to make sure they were well out of earshot of any of his immediate family. "There. Much better. The worst part about having family is that they always find a pressing need to speak to you whenever one of these things takes place. As if I don't see enough of them on a regular basis anyway - but that's beside the point. What I mean is, Mikamo-kun, I've never yet referred to you as Lord - except in jest. And, considering that you're about to begin work for me on a very special project of my own, I'd like to think you can drop the titles when you speak to me, too."
"My father would have something to say about that, and I'm sure your mother would, also." Mikamo raised an eyebrow, and Kagato shook his head.
"If I'm named Crown Prince, then there will be enough people to stand on ceremony and call me all the exhalted titles on the planet." He said carelessly. "But you and I, we're friends and we're allies. I trust in you, Mikamo, and I trust in your abilities. Will you trust in mine, and start referring to me as the equals I consider us to be?"
"If you're sure." Mikamo looked doubtful. Kagato's eyes sparkled with mischief.
"Well, between you and me, if I am named Crown Prince, there are a lot of things that will begin to change." He added. "But right now, I don't know if that's even possible. Mikamo, I need to know you're one hundred percent on my side. My sworn ally in all that's about to begin."
"That sounds almost sinister." Mikamo's brow furrowed in confusion. "What do you expect to happen?"
"If all goes how I think it will, nothing." Kagato dismissed this with a careless gesture. "And if Yosho does return, nothing much will happen again. But you have to realise how violently my Grandfather dislikes my mother and I. He dotes on Uncle Azusa and if Yosho really does renege on his obligations, it will be a hard truth for our Emperor to accept. Acknowledging me as any kind of heir - even as Azusa's - won't come easy to him. He may even begin to look...outside."
"You mean, settle on someone else's child, instead of you?" Mikamo stared. Kagato nodded.
"It has occured to me." He said carefully. "Grandfather has never put any faith in me. In fact, they didn't even summon seers when I was on the way. I'm that unimportant that they didn't even think to discover whether or not I'd be born with Jurai's power. As it is, my magic is not as reliable as I'd like. I'm trying to think ahead, Mikamo. Not just for me, but for all of Jurai. I need to know you'll back me up."
"Of course, but I don't have much influence in any circles." Mikamo shrugged. "My family are still displeased with me and even if they weren't, I'm only the third son. I don't stand to inherit Father's title or become Daimyo in his stead."
"It's not that kind of support I'm seeking." Kagato shook his head. "It's more your other gifts - your scientific expertise. It's not easy to explain here, but I had to know that you were committed to my cause. If you understand what I'm saying, you'll realise that I'm afraid of some kind of...violent incident. Even a coup of some sort. And I have to be ready - in case my claim is judged false."
"Jurai hasn't had civil unrest over the succession for generations." Mikamo looked thoughtful. "But should we be discussing these things in the middle of such a public arena? Kagato, if you're as afraid of this as you say, why risk people overhearing?"
"Because there is nowhere so private to talk on Jurai as a public social gathering." Kagato said wryly. "Trust me, we could talk about stripping naked and parading up and down the centre aisle and noone would bat an eyelid."
He raised his glass in a mocking toast, taking a sip of the bitter, reddish liquid.
"Everyone is too busy dancing, drinking and passing around the powders that seem to be all the rage at the moment." He added. "Given that, none of them are even paying a jot of attention to what you or I are saying. It does help to be the shadow prince sometimes, as well. Nobody has ever cast their eye over me when there's been other people to focus their attention on."
"Jurai is a messy place for political intrigue, isn't it?" Mikamo glanced at his drink, then drained the glass, setting it down on the tray of a passing serving man as he did so. "Especially if your Grandfather is so opposed to your line that he'd seek to find others with a weaker claim than you to displace you."
"Indeed." Kagato's eyes darkened. "The irony of it is, of course, that Uncle Azusa is possibly the only man at court who would support my claim...if the matter ever arose. But he always bows to Grandfather's will, sooner or later."
He sighed, shrugging his shoulders.
"Not that it may matter, in the long run. Tessei brought me a report that the Jurai Military have orders to bring Yosho back here by force. It may all be in vain, Mikamo-kun, and we may be worrying for nothing. It seems I underestimated Grandfather's desperation - I think he'd rather have Yosho caged than me flying free in his dynastic shuffling."
"It might be safer for everyone if Yosho did return." Mikamo suggested. Kagato stared at his friend for a moment, then a lazy smile touched his lips.
"Yes, it might." He acknowledged. "But then again, my friend, you haven't seen him since the Lady Haruna invaded his thoughts and his emotions. He's not the Prince he once was. Like you, he's been lured away from the light by a temptress. Lady Haruna is a very pretty girl, and Yosho is completely enraptured by her. That in itself is going to cause enough unrest."
"You think he'll persevere with seeing her, even if he is brought back here and forbidden to make contact?" Mikamo looked surprised. Kagato nodded.
"Yes, if he is brought back here." He agreed. "Which is why I need your help, Mikamo-kun. I need you to stop thinking about your lady friend back at the Academy, and focus your whole attention on my purposes. Whatever happens, I think it very likely that I should be prepared. After all, Grandfather is an old man. Fit still, to be sure - but old. When he dies, Uncle Azusa will inherit his throne. But after that..."
He trailed off, spreading his hands. Mikamo frowned, then nodded.
"Well, if I can help, I will help." He agreed cautiously. "But I hope that it doesn't come down to any kind of trouble. I mean, your Grandfather is a pretty forceful man, when all is said and done. I'm sure that if anyone can convince Yosho of his true responsibilities, it will be Emperor Shigure."
Kagato's eyes flickered thoughtfully.
"Perhaps." He acknowledged at length. "I suppose we'll both just have to wait and see."
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Professor Washu?"
As Washu glanced over the documentation in her hands, she was aware of a voice calling her name and she glanced up, offering Manami a smile as she set the scraps of paper down on her already cluttered work surface. She folded her hands over them, sending her student an enquiring look.
"Yes, Manami-san?" She asked softly. "Is there a problem?"
"No. I just wondered if you were finished with my report." Manami blushed, her cheeks pinkening as she spoke. "Professor, I hope you're not mad with me, but I went to the Senior Council and asked for the right paperwork to apply for secondment. I know that very few people get to go study on Jurai before they've reached the highest honours - I realise that my chances aren't great. But I have to submit something, and I thought..."
"Yes, I see." Washu's face broke into an understanding smile and she nodded her head. "And yes, I have. One moment...I'll find it for you. It read very well, Manami. You don't really need my guidance - particularly on a subject which you and Kichi specialise in so much and I so little. Juraian magic is an enigma in itself - but it made very interesting and logical reading."
"Good." Manami's eyes lit up with pleasure as her companion rummaged among the piles of papers, producing a disk and holding it out. "Thank you. I'm dying to go there and see what I can learn. There are a few questions in my mind that I'd like to pursue - particularly concerning the powers attributed to Tsunami-kami-sama herself. I've seen the pictures, and read the archive reports, but so far I haven't found any real evidence. And, well, I'd like to. Very much."
"Then you might want to find a Professor other than me to sign your application." Washu said lightly. "Perhaps one with a much more detailed grasp of Juraian magic."
Manami shrugged.
"Perhaps." She acknowledged at length. "Although I always feel you know more than you're telling us about a lot of things we work on. Like you already know the answers before we prove them, sometimes."
"Well, I wouldn't be much good for guidance if I told you all the outcomes before you reached them yourself." Washu said simply. "Take your report, Manami. If you want me to sign your form, I will sign it - but I do think you'd be better finding someone who specialises more in the subjects you want to pursue."
Manami nodded, taking the disk and heading back across the lab to her workstation, and Washu watched her go, a thoughtful look in her pretty green eyes.
"Jurai." She murmured. "In all my years I still don't understand what it is about that rock that attracts so much interest and attention."
"You seem to be on another planet today, Professor Hakubi."
The soft, mocking tones of Dr Clay startled her from her musing and she turned, glaring at him.
"Is there something I can do for you, Doctor Clay?" She asked quietly. "Something in my model you don't understand, perhaps?"
"I don't need your model to understand perfectly what I am doing here, or why you're in the position you're in, Washu." Clay bristled, narrowing his beady black eyes as he fixed her with a look of dislike. "It's hard to have respect for someone who gains her honours through dalliances with the upper classes of various wealthy planets."
"I earned my professorial status through hard work and perseverance. Something you might want to try some time." Washu said acidly. "And remember whose department this is, Clay. I've no time for slacking and I won't tolerate insolent behaviour, either. If you have so many problems working for me, I suggest you don't. I'm sure we'd both be happier if you slipped off to some other area of research."
She narrowed her gaze, fixing him with a scrutinous look.
"Menori might take you on. He has a lot of work to do with his Phoenix ship over the next few weeks." She added casually.
Clay eyed her for a moment, then he shook his head, his octopus-like curls bobbing around his face as he did so.
"I'll stay where there's a chance my skills might offset the crazy methods you use with your students." he said quietly. "The Academy has tolerated your madness for a long time, Professor - but your manner of teaching and guiding your students is both erratic and unsuitable. You treat them as friends and equals and too many of them are working far too much on their own projects. What kind of progress do you expect to make, paying these people for second-rate research work and the pursuit of their own ambitions?"
"Well, Kichi and the others are still doing what you've never done. Working hard for themselves, as well as for me." Washu cast a glance out across the laboratory. "But what you say interests me, Clay. I'm curious to know more about my...subversive methods."
She offered him a smile, gesturing in the direction of her private lab as she did so and disarming him with the sudden drop in her hostility. "I must admit that sometimes, being as young as I am, I find it difficult to keep up the divide between my duties and my friendships. But maybe you are right. Perhaps these students of mine do have too easy a ride."
"Of course they do." Clay recovered himself, eying her cautiously. "Especially the Itokawa girl, and Manami Kurashida. Neither one of them are paying the full Academy student fees, Washu - yet you treat them like they're the future of universal science."
"When I came to the Academy, Dr Clay, I had neither money nor influence to recommend me to the Elders." Washu shrugged her shoulders. "I worked my way up because someone took a chance on me. Kichi and Manami are both bright girls. Finance shouldn't stand in the way of them achieving their dreams. That's why I agreed to have them in my department, under my guidance, even if their chosen area of work isn't exactly the same as my own. They earn their keep, and work very hard. I have no regrets."
"I'm sure the Elders would like to know how much fudged paperwork was involved in bringing them here." Clay said darkly. "Especially Itokawa. It's well known that her brother was only allowed to work among us if he supplemented his work with security responsibilities across the complex. Kichi does no such thing - she's using up expensive time and resources, and giving very little in return. I've not yet seen her submit one paper to you for reviewing. You're being taken for a ride, Washu-sensei."
"Then come into my lab and we'll discuss it, properly." Washu suggested lightly. "If you have suggestions to make to me, Clay, I'm all ears. After all, I'm always willing to listen and learn things from my colleagues."
Clay looked suspicious for a moment, but Washu offered him another benign, dazzling smile, and he shrugged his shoulders, nodding his head.
"All right." He agreed at length. "I'm glad to see you have the sense to listen to me, in any case."
"Of course. I'd be very lax indeed if I didn't hear the concerns of members of my department." Washu agreed lightly, leading the way across the lab and pushing open the door, ushering him inside. "Would you like a drink, Doctor? Lab work can be thirsty and with them doing so many tests on the heating system, I'm parched dry as a bone. Would you mind if I poured myself some tea? Would you like to join me?"
"I...I don't see why not." Clay was totally off guard now, confused by her mode of address, and Washu eyed him for a moment, amused by the bewilderment in his small black eyes. She nodded her head, gesturing for him to take a seat.
"Then bear with me just one moment." She called over her shoulder, pushing open the small cubby that the lab boasted and reaching up on the shelf for two cups, placing them into the tea machine and hitting the relevant buttons. "I'm very interested in what you have to say, Doctor. Believe me. After all, as colleagues and as the next highest ranking member of my department, you and I should not be at loggerheads. I'd like us to work together to improve matters for everyone. Wouldn't you?"
She cast him a glance, then slipped her fingers beneath the unit, pulling out a small, greenish vial and glancing at the contents. A slow smile touched her lips as she tipped the solution into the tea machine, watching as it mixed in with the hot, steaming liquid and then pumped the solution into the two waiting vessels. Scooping them up, she approached her colleague nonchalantly, setting one of the cups down in front of him and taking a sip from her own.
"If you ask me, they need to do some work on the tea cycle, let alone the heating system." She commented. "But it'll do, for the time being."
Clay picked up his cup, glancing at the hot green liquid for a moment, then taking a healthy swig. He nodded.
"Perhaps you should spend more time working on that, and less trying to upstage Professor Menori." He suggested quietly. Washu raised an eyebrow.
"I have serious safety concerns about Menori's work." She said pensively. "But it has nothing to do with my own designs. You should know that better than anyone - I'm barely off the ground and I've only just signed and submitted the paperwork for the genetic analyses I'd need. I'm just concerned that Menori hasn't thought everything through. In theory, it's a good idea. In practice...well, would you like to be faced with a hundred or more psychotics whom the Galaxy Police can't even kill?"
"I'm a scientist, Washu. I push boundaries. I don't worry about the Galaxy Police or their responsibilities." Clay took another swig of tea, setting his cup down on the unit. "Menori is pushing those boundaries as far as he can go. I would have thought you, with your unconventional methodology, would support him in that."
"Well, let's just say that I'm not too fond of the insanity model." Washu shrugged her shoulders flippantly. "Madness is ugly, and I'd be failing in my duty if I didn't raise my concerns. It might be I'm wrong and if so, Menori will get his patent. But it never hurts to be sure."
She smiled.
"Although we didn't come here to talk about Menori, did we?" She asked softly. "You had concerns about my students and the methods I use to guide them. Would you share those thoughts with me, Doctor? I'm most interested to hear your views."
"Of course." Clay nodded, folding his arms across his ample torso as he leant back in his chair. "In particular, I don't like how you fawn your time and attention over the Itokawa girl. You talk about paperwork and doing things through the right channels, but I've seen Kichi's papers and I know that they weren't pushed through the normal processes. It's fairly plain to me that you saw her and decided she'd make a good lab navvy for you...regardless of the cost to the Academy. And then, once you'd manipulated her entrance, you acquired the missing funding by seducing influential people such as Professor Niwase, in the hope that he'd fill in the gaps. And I've no doubt he filled in some gaps...anyway."
He fixed her with a meaningful smile and despite herself, Washu flushed with indignation.
"Mikamo Niwase is no longer an alumnus of the Academy." She said quietly. "And he was a friend of mine, Clay. That's all that need concern you. Mikamo is a brilliant man with many, many good ideas. But he's gone now. And for the record, he didn't supply any funding to my department - of any nature. If you're so clued in to my methods, you'll know that Kichi's funding was mostly covered by my last patenting - and I did some extensive work for the Elders on their security droid program, to compensate the excess. Kichi might not have applied in the usual way, but her being here is all above board. I made sure of it. After all, I don't believe she should be hindered by her family's lack of money. She's a brilliant young mind...and that's more valuable than all the gold in the universe."
"I'm not a fool, Washu." Clay narrowed his eyes. "I know that you and Niwase were involved and I don't need to see financial balance sheets to know that he had more than physical pleasures to offer. You might consider yourself attractive - in fact, I know a lot of the other alumni consider you so. But I see a manipulative, arrogant woman who uses those around her for her own ends. Just because I haven't found the proof that you're breaking rules left right and centre doesn't mean that I won't find it. It's here, and that's why I'm staying in your department. The Elders might think you're wonderful, but I'm going to prove otherwise. And then they'll see who is more suited to lead the department of New Sciences!"
"So this is all about petty jealousy." Washu sighed, picking up her cup and idly swilling the liquid around as she did so. "And what about Menori, Clay? How much of this so called theorising of yours did you share with him before the patenting hearing? Because I was rather startled to have my friendship with Mikamo questioned and insinuated about in the middle of an official hearing."
"Menori is a good scientist and works for his stipend." Clay said angrily. "Plus, he's not some slip of a girl who thinks she owns the universe just because some moony-eyed elder decided to convey robes on her for meaningless drivel about outside forces."
"And how much did he pay you to spy on me?" Washu asked softly.
"Not enough, clearly." Clay muttered, then froze, raising an alarmed gaze to his foe, who chuckled.
"I thought so." She said lightly. "You wouldn't stay in my department unless there was money in it for you, however much you hate me. Is it really because you think my professorship was a sham, Clay? Do you really hold out a grudge that I won control of this department over your head? Or do you just despise what you know you can never touch? Menori's loose with his hands but you betray yourself with your eyes. I know you better than you think I do...which is it, Doctor? Petty envy of my position - or that some men easily gain favours from a pretty woman and others simply do not?"
"What have you done to me?" Clay whispered, his apprehension growing with every moment. "What...?"
"Nothing." Washu pretended to look surprised. "What could I possibly do to you? You're a scientist of many years experience. And by your own words, I'm just a slip of a girl."
Clay bit his lip, eying her mutinously.
"So tell me, while you're being so obliging...was it only Menori's pay you've been in?" Washu added genially. "Because you know that spying is not something I really look kindly on. I don't want people stealing my secrets, after all - and you'd understand that I'd have to take such matters very seriously."
"There are people on the Council who don't like or trust you. People with sense and judgement but who were outvoted when it came to deciding this department." Clay told her sullenly. "I don't spy, Washu. I report for the people who run this institution. They want to know of any odd activities that go on under your mentorship. And I am more than happy to oblige them with that information."
Washu's eyes narrowed.
"Such as my connection to Professor Niwase?" She asked softly.
"Do you think he was sent away because he's the brilliant genius you think he is?" Clay snorted. "Love made you blind, Washu. Blind and stupid. Niwase was sent to Jurai because it was one place you are not likely to ever go. His family were most gratified to learn of his unsuitable connection. After all, the sons of Seniwan daimyo don't consort with low-born scientists who play mind games just to gain funding."
Washu fought to control her temper, shaking her head.
"You will never understand how people think or feel, because you do neither one, Clay." She said wearily. "Whether Mikamo is here or on Jurai really doesn't matter in terms of my department. You might think sending him away will sabotage my work, but I assure you that won't be the case. I'm dedicated to my science and that always comes first. Regardless of what obstacles find themselves in my path."
Clay picked up his drink, sniffing at it suspiciously.
"What is in this?" He demanded. "Washu, have you poisoned me? This is a matter for the Elders' Council!"
"Poisoned you?" Washu stared, then began to laugh. "You have such a suspicious mind - not everyone is as duplitious as you are."
She shrugged, taking the cup from his hands and drinking the remaining contents down in one gulp, setting the cup back down on the unit. "But if that will make you feel happier..."
Clay pursed his lips, glancing from her to the empty vessel for a moment. Then he got to his feet.
"Sometimes I wonder exactly what you are, Professor." He said grimly. "But mark my words, I'll find it out. And when I do, you and your department will be sorry. The Council should never have given any power to someone like you - and I'm going to make sure they discover that fact, no matter how long it takes."
With that he was gone, and Washu shook her head, amusement in her green eyes.
"So gullible. So vulnerable. So stupid." She observed absently, retrieving her own half-drunk mug and returning both vessels to the safety of her cubby. "Mikamo's substance is powerful indeed. But nothing that a little strength of will can't overcome. My compound was potent enough to force Clay's truth but not enough to make me divulge secrets, and that's worth knowing. Clay has a weakness and now I know how to exploit it. But then...what to do with the information he's given me."
She pursed her lips, then frowned, shrugging her shoulders.
"A little of this Menori's way wouldn't hurt, considering it's more than likely he knows all about his ships' weaknesses." She decided. "And more, it does me no harm if he pulls out of the race to produce regenerative space transport. And then...well, I'll have to keep an eye on Clay and make sure everything he sees me do is by the book. I have no desire to have my tenure pulled, not after I've done so much to get to where I am now. Maybe it is a good thing Mikamo is gone. At least noone can accuse me of being a gold digger when I don't even have contact with him any more."
She sighed, a sudden sense of melancholy washing over her.
"If only I hadn't been so weak as to love him." She mused sadly. "But I suppose at the end of it, I'm not made of stone. We all have our weaknesses and Clay seems well aware of mine. Now at least I can level the playing field...and hopefully, up the stakes on my side. Mikamo will be forgotten...my work here is much more important and I have to focus on it, if I'm going to succeed."