Dabida became a seething heap of rumour and exclamation as the chosen news outlets promptly put the communications on their Grid-sites. Ciletij descemded like a swarm of mechanical wasps on the new forum.  Airoch smiled for the camera and asjusted her shawls.  Town halls all over Imperial Kadun raised the imperial flag, and phones rang, with a sort of demented persistence thought Vanya’s PA, who definitely wasn’t a dodo, as though communicating the frazzle of the caller, but Vanya heard only an uneasy peace, a false peace.  Azt cannot tolerate this.  What will they do, throw everything they have at Carlin.  Burunda.  They must come.  Is this all staged?  Sarat, I may assume, has no interest in dying on Day One.
Am I entirely sure this is not Fidub’s trap?  Azt won’t be.  Double-bluff?
Theoretically, all those fine Fidubi ships could head for Azt.
Oh aren’t they just bloody like that.  Something has just changed.  Not totally sure I like it.  For 600 years Fidub has been lounging out there in the ocean, our big brother.  And now Fidub and Kadun are mum and dad.  He snorted to himself.  We cannot, can no longer trust Fidub not to act unilaterally.  In of course the interests of Fidub.  Mum would never act in the interests of Dad, she just wouldn’t do that.  And pigs have wings.
 
It’s so wonderfully low-key, said someone to Prog.
Prog laughed.
Low-key high explosive.
 
“The bomb has gone off,” said Tinsian-Li. “I suggest we fervently occupy ourselves with the internal affairs of Vasucula.”
He said as much to Vanya.
“You,” said Vanya, “do not border Carlin, trade with Carlin, have many friends and contacts in Carlin.”
“We,” leered Tinsian-Li, “do not have our monarchy closely related to the emperor.”
 
Mel is the emperor’s cousin.  What does this mean to us?  Now it has come to it, Vanya found his brain had quietly frozen and refused to process this particular piece of data.
 
“Mel!” said SEani.  “Obviously in this up to his neck, oh is my cousin anile empress, first I heard of it.  But we can corner Mel any time.  We need to be very clear what we have to say to His Imperial Majesty.”
Actually you don’t, Seani, because Sarat is just about to call you and make you an offer you can’t refuse.  
“The Times,” said Sarat, “reaches places the local guys don’t.”
“Like G-T, G-T and G-T.  Ciletij are going mad, Sarat.”
“I’m a rally nice giuy,” said Sarat.  “They just need to get to know me.  Not that naïve.”
“But it’ll help.  You hope.  You can stay nice and govern Kadun?”
“Negative on dumbfuck crap,” said Sarat. 
“The governing principle of the empire!”
“Pretty much,” said Sarat.
“I have to assume you’ve talked to a lot of people that I have not only not met but possibly never heard of.”
“All will be revealed.  Transparency and oversight are the name of the game.”
“Good Fidubi republican that you are…”
“Leader of the pack,” said Sarat.
“Yes,” said Seani.  “Yes, that suits you.  Far more than.  Naturally my head buzzes.  When the pack is the Kadun military.”
“Talk to you later,” said Sarat.
 
Num rang in from the border.
“Word is he has half the Army on the other side.  What is this, the invasion of Dabida?!
“I’m sure all will be revealed,” said Seani.
Venzat thought about it.
“Makes sense.  Means the Third Army in Vaudos can’t sneak in behind them.”
They got that bit right, at least.
 
LIVE FROM ZUR
“And it seems Tar and Saski have gone to an ‘undisclosed destination, leaving their sons and heirs to speak on behalf of A-M.  Who just happen to be the cousins of the Anile Empress!.  Just where those sons and heirs are we do not know but we’re assured they’ll be with us shortly….Here they are now!”
Mel and Hass tripped down to the cordon at the bottom of the hill.
“Good this, isn’t it,” said Mel.
WTF Mel!  Mel, what is this!  Maya, Mel!  Etc.
“Sarat cannot be emperor in Azt!”
“Sarat cannot not be emperor in Azt,” said Hass.  “You want the Cult on the doorstep?”
“Your cousin is Anile Empress.  I don’t believe I said that.”
“FFS, Mel, what can Sarat actually do!”
“Tell you, we tell Azt.”
“Sure I can see that but – “
“What are they putting the screens up for?”
“You’ll see,” said Mel.
“I mean, come on, a whole load of stuff on the Grid, but that’s the Grid, Mel, this is RL.”
We have to cut now to Vanya at the Senate.
“Azt has demanded we arrest Sarat and Maya. Since they are both in Kadun, it is possible only to respond with howls of laughter.  They are guilty of  conspiracy to overthrow the government of a sovereign state.  I replied in short: indeed Kadun is a sovereign state.  Sarat is its sovereign. We in Dabida have good cause to be grateful to those in Carlin with whom Sarat and Maya have conspired or Azt is at our border.”
“Sure we can see that but – let me get this straight…”
“Sarat is saying he’s going to take over the bits Azt does rule, right, Vanya.”
“He’s declared war on Azt.”
“Naturally they are not happy about it,” said Vanya.
“It’s kind of – not a coup!  This make my head hurt.  We have to look at exactly what Sarat is saying.”
“What Sarat is saying,” said Vanya, “is the guys in Carlin hate, loathe and despise Azt.  The guys in the west hate loathe and despise Azt – “
“Time they got their heads together!”
“Under Sarat!”
“Talked to Sarat, Vanya?”
Vanya smiled.
“Not very recently.”
“It’s kind of like – this is where my head hurts.  Carlin is sort of independent, right.  I mean, if Maya had ‘overthrown’ the guys in charge of Carlin that would be a coup.”
Back on the hill…
“Tell you about Varna’s Wall,” said Hass. “Every time they shoot down a vampire, they pin another little model vampire to the wall, a small bat-like creature with leathery wings and a pointed rat-face, hanging upside down with blood dripping from its fangs.  Carlin encourages enterprise.  That was the idea of a model-maker in Misinit, who now mass-produces them.   Got one to show you.”  He felt in his pocket and solemnly held up an ickle model vampire.
“OK, that’s funny, but.”
“But it’s not,” said Mel, “it’s a deadly serious war for Kadun’s soul.”
“if you say Carlin was independent, then Sarat has kind of overthrown - ?”
“Five kingdoms united by the imperial crown,” said Mel, “because they recognized they were sronger together than apart.”
“Sure, but it’s still ancient history.”
“So this is – three kingdoms – in a takeover bid for the rest!”
“That was always going to be the case.”
“Sure…OK, we have this picture, you and Sarat grinning at each other happily across the length of Kadun. That’s mind-bending.”
“So they’re going to take Azt?”
“Hanif-Altan,” said Mel.
“What was that exactly?  I mean I’ve heard of it.”
“The decisive battle when the armies of the east joined the armies of the west in destroying the Cult.”
“So Var-sega’, Van-senok?”
“All will be revealed,” said Mel.
“Actually it probably won’t,” said Hass.  “Tell you, tell Azt.  But it will happen.”
 
The world’s press-fiends yammering at the border were warmly invited into Imperial Kadun, and driven through an open corridor to what was called the holding zone, where there was an entrance for Carlin’s newshounds. There they passed through what was called an x-ray, a giant metal funnel, just walk through slowly, one at a time; their chattels had to be laid out on a conveyor belt and vanished into a second funnel; on emerging into the light of day,  they signed a declaration stating they understood this was a war-zone and entry was entirely at their own risk. They were then issued with a smartcard and entered a wide corridor lined by high barbed wire fencing that led to something called Press Area, in which prefab accommodation had kindly been erected for them. They did not yet realize this was part of a larger cage, one encompassing the village.  Carlin’s newshounds of course did.  All will be explained! Said cats happily.  It’d better be.  A single storey prefab offered terminals, a huge and detailed map of Kadun, numerous sockets, phones for the recharging of, several easy chairs and a settee, a  well-stocked fridge and freezer, a microwave, and what even growling Ciletij had to admit was excellent coffee.  The chocolate buns with fresh cream were pretty good too. Welcome to your new home, said the cats.  The journos leered.  Not a storm in a teacup, then.  On the walls were many posters with useful information, not least the capacity of the Stag Hotel and the Rabbiters’ to deliver food and menus of what that food might be. People grinned at each other.  This is no temporary arrangement: does he think he’s news or something?   Beyond the prefab was a yard filled with rows of chairs, at the end of which was a dais on which was a long table covered by a dark-green cloth, a couple of chairs to the right of it and on the left a screen. Behind the dais was a banner, silver on black: THE ANILE EMPEROR.  Sarat was sitting on the edge of the dais, with B+P.   Behind the screen was a door, through which local notables entered.  Sarat got up to greet them.  They made their way across the dais to the steps in the middle, descended and began to settle themselves in the front two rows,  Sistenda, his deputy and other carlini politicians, Saryulin and Duvi, Asdinan and Mardis, Vishtu, Barfanu and Gerdi from the village, and Varna and Prog, each with a small entourage of junior officers and NCOs.  Cats lounged all the way round the walls of the cage, some ceaselessly watchful, others ceaselessly checking phones for signs anything serious was happening or about to happen, screwing up their whiskers to penetrate the quantities of hot air.  Sarat swung himself up onto the dais and looked around.
“OK, I think we’re ready to rock.”
He sat on the table.
“Brownie points,” murmured Sistenda.
“He hasn’t said anything yet!”
“Look at that dais.”
Saryulin laughed.
“Nothing on it.”
“Exactly.”
“Not overdoing it?” asked Mardis anxiously. “Too much ra?”
“I think we have to say something,” said Sistenda.
“It’s been a long time,” said As.  “We’ve missed you.”
If you want to grab your coffee and go through,” a cat said to the press-fiends. “In an orderly fashion, pretty-please.”
LIVE FROM CARLIN
“Now the moment you’ve all been waiting for,” said Mel.
“Shit, Mel!”
Screens had been set up at the bottom of the hill, in the Saa’anda Senta, Caulin Park and the grounds of the Shrine.
Sarat stood up midst the clicking of phones and now here we are about to hear Sarat speak.
 “Can we settle, please, guys.”
Not bad for famous first words, allowed Sistenda.  Calm, authoritative, casual, bloody unbelievable. 
Baz reached under the table and produced what appeared to be a yellow metal ball, about the size of a large balloon, attached to a rubber tube at the end of which was a bulb.  He squeezed the bulb and the device began to caterwaul.  Silence abruptly fell.
“Knew that would work.  Saw it in a tool-shop and adapted it.”
Certain amount of snorting.
 “Pray silence for His Imperial Majesty!” shouted someone. A lot of people gurgled quietly and grinned.
“That’s the one,” said Sarat.
And looks it! Take it it’s fake!  They didn’t have faux fur in Narulis’ time.  Sarat wore heavy black silk loons, black leather riding boots, a silver-grey silk polo and a black fur gilet.
Sistenda stood.
“My lord emperor!  Welcome back.”
“It’s good to be here,” said Sarat. “I thank you.”
“Hope it’s fake,” said a Dabidan.  “Hass would never forgive you.”
Sarat grinned.
“Completely.  OK.   First I talk.  Then you interrogate me.”
 “Lights, action, camera…”  said Baz.  On the screen  appeared a shimmering, glittering silver coronet above a silver chair on a dark grey background.  “There, isn’t that pretty?”
Appreciative whistles.
“There’ll bit quite a bit of artwork,” observed Sarat.  “You can get copies off the Grid-site.  General things.  Press things.  Military things.  We’re here to finish a war. We’re also here to be talked to and probably yelled at.  Certainly argued with.  The first thing is the Grid site.  The address is gsg.kgj.ka.”  A list of electronic addresses appeared on the screen. “K-G-J, Kaduna-gar-jaht, this matter of Kadun. There you will find a mine of useful information, names, who’s who in this set-up, how to get hold of us and the whole of imperial law.  You’ll also find articles on subjects of the moment, such as poverty, disease, sexism and a load of academic papers on things like industrially induced lung-disease and the use of torture by Azt.
Murmurs and sage nodding obliterated by “Mitch is Press Officer!” competing with “Zulagan!” and “CLIK!” “Communalism!”  “That’s crazy!”
Baz reached threateningly for the hooter.
“Me first,” said Sarat.  “there’s also a special section of totally useless information, the sort of stuff some papers hinge on, name of my favourite hamster when I was ten.  Do not bother asking me my favourite colour or movie.”
“Silver?” suggested someone.
“The Return?” suggested someone else to a lot of laughter. There was also a certain amount of grinning and making moues.  Are we not the cutting-edge of investigative journalism?  But no-one was reckless enough to deny Sarat’s favourite movie was also hot news.
The silver chair gave way to an equally glittering and shimmering silver birch.
“Maya is in V-k finalizing a couple of things.  She’s at the Sardun camp, no Press please, gather you’re circling like a hungry wolf-pack.. Seani from the Straits Time will have a vid link with her later to put Dabida’s perspective and the local guys will talk to her then.  After that she’ll come to Carlin, stopping off in Zur to sign the agreements we’ve made with Dabida and Vasucula.”  Buzz, buzz. “She’ll talk to you about that, when Zuri have finished squealing at her.”
Gallia had looked up sharply.
“Divison of labour, Sarat.”
“She’s a bit more diplomatic than I am.  I shouldn’t like to exaggerate.  Yes.  This  enterprise is marginally less crazed with two people doing it.”
“But you wouldn’t like to exaggerate!”
“Especially when she knows Vanya!  Just thinking about you two, anyone you don’t know?”
“Not Fidub?  We have to ask the exact role of Fidub.”
“You can ask anything you like,” said Sarat, “when I’ve finished rabbiting.  Am I not in Carlin?”
“What is Sardun exactly?”
“The special forces that developed in the west, equivalent of PANTHER or the H-W.”
“Wow!”
“Just looking…And their symbol is a silver birch, right?”
“Yes. To continue….” said Sarat.  “Anyone who has something to say to us, the mail is [email protected].  Obvious Cult ravings will be deleted.  Everything else will be read and answered, though not necessarily by us. Cubs, baby PANTHERs, will read everything, overseen by adult cats.  Names are appreciated.  Understood of course that some people might not feel safe identifying themselves.  If you state you live round the corner  and choose to rant at me under some pseudonym, you earn no brownie points. Concern for your safety and that of your family is sensible and sane.  Cowardice is not.  There’s a  forum on the site, Sarat’s Pad, for people to discuss anything they want to discuss.  There it’s the usual Grid free for all.  If you want to howl as An Angry Citizen, be my guest. The postal address is c/o The Post Office, Carlin Village.  If you want to send us a bomb, don’t bother.  All incoming mail is screened by PANTHER.  If you are in Carlin or able to get to Carlin, we are happy to meet you in the Rabbiters’ or at the House.  Speech is free and preferably sensibly articulated.  Anyone unhappy about anything, you don’t minge in a corner. You tell us.”
“Mingeing taboo!  Got that!”
“This is like nothing on earth,” muttered someone.
“That sounds as if we’re here for a while.  We may be. Here we are in the lush green fields of Carlin.  The sun is shining, the sky is blue and in Azt they’re plotting my eternal torment.  That means they’re going to send the hard guys against us, Corsin.”
“Oh-oh.”
“I knew you’d understand.  This is a war-zone. Corsin are going to come and they’re going to lose. As you know, the Cult has a good line in special effects. We have a better one.  I think it’ll amuse them to keep us waiting, but they’ll have to come.  That or they skulk, cower, of course, knowing that they’ll lose.
“Don’t be inflammatory, Sarat!  You might upset them.”
“Everyone go Aaah!” said Sarat.
Not quite clear who started it but everyone went Aaah!
“Alternatively they don’t come, but we think the affront is so appalling that they must come.  “So here we all are, autumn sunshine and intelligent conversation.  The  situation could change at any minute.  If it’s go, there’ll be plenty of warning, because it will start outside Azt or if not in the north.  If the Third Army moves independently, less warning.  No reason however why it would do anything that stupid. Unless of course it’s decided to surrender.
About the guys in Vaudos there is this to be said.  They’re not all monsters with poisoned fangs.  Sure, some are, sure Corsin are.  Others are  average guys who have found themselves on the wrong side of history.  Naturally we are alert equally to pretence to surrender but certainly we are open to overtures.  Precisely what empire means in the modern age is a learning curve for all of us but there can be no dishonour in surrender to the emperor.”
Spine-tingle, thought As.  It’s all going to be like that, just when everyone’s going Aaah! and you might as well be at a rock-concert there will a reminder of 1600 years of history.
“Truly, there’s a possibility they might surrender?”
“Possibility is all it is,” said Sarat, “and only some of them, but yes.”
“I command you cease and desist in the emperor’s name!” proclaimed Baz.
Sarat grinned.
“Has a lovely ring to it.  What it means to them is something else.”
A great many irturbi throughout Kadun looked intent and exchanged glances.  That, we had not thought of.  Surrender to Carlin, surrender to  Var-sega’, different, quite different.
“If only on the battlefield,” said Rewn.  “Don’t forget the loudspeaker.”
One of Za-remin’s fliers said, “Can we drop leaflets?”
“Just thinking,” said another of them.  What he thunk shall shortly come to fruition.
Sarat continued: “Now, dear ladies and gentlemen of the Press, all that has implications for your noble calling.
            The disposition of troops is simply so they can’t come up behind us from Vaudos.  The rest is because hard-working guys have to be free to have a drink in the village.  That by the way includes me.  I have no intention of taking a pit-stop and being mobbed. This is not the Sa’aanda Senta!  Point One when it’s go you scram.  Point Two – haven’t I said I’m going to shorten working-hours?  Isn’t that cool, guys?  I’m going to shorten yours.   This is how it’s going to work.
Press briefing like this, every morning at 11. We here of course  have been toiling since dawn.  Timing is so the continent is in a state of wakefulness.  There is no particularly good time.    Every journo from anywhere admitted, provided he or she has jumped through the hoops. After that we cull you or there are more journos than soldiers. You’ve all got smartcards. Random selection of 20 admitted daily to the camp between 2 and 4 Exceptions: those trailing me, Maya, Mitch, Karula and any member of A-M who drops by. Also randomly selected. We shall heroically suffer you until 6. Everybody has to have some privacy. There is a difference between public figures and private citizens which is of course clear to all civilized people.  You are civilized people, aren’t you. Great deal of snorting, yeah, Sarat, we’re pussy-cats, how can we follow you in depth 
“So in the camp we can talk to anyone?”
“That’s the next bit.  Point Three, transparency ends at protecting guys on the ground.  Azt may not be doing anything but we are.  That means there are no-go areas.  You can tell that because they’ve got big signs saying NO GO.  Anyone, of any status, from any country caught either trespassing or hanging around after work will be incredibly politely interned for the duration in a really awfully nice country-house here in Carlin.  No, I don’t mean that one.”  Lot of laughter.  “Morons are non grata. Point Four is morons are very non grata.  Talk to guys, sure. You ask nicely if someone is free to talk to you.  You do not press anyone who does not want to talk to you. Do not get in the way of anyone’s work and if anyone tells you you’re in the way of his or her work butt right out instanter. The word is polite, is civility.   If anyone tells PANTHER you’re being a pain in the ass, you’re catfood. Point Five is I am not Narulis and this is not ancient history!  This is a high-tech war with precision timing.  Any scrap of equipment that could conceivably or inconceivably get in the way is also non grata.  Phones mute please, film on them, record on them, but any bearer of a ringtone will probably be summarily shot.
      “Aw, you do’t mean that!  Do you?”
      “You want to try it?” asked Sarat enthusiastically.  “Of course all this assumes we’re going to stay news.  If you get bored with us and go away, we’ll rethink.
“Oh yawn!”
“You believe that?”
      “There’s nothing to hide here besides what’s hidden.  There, you knew it made sense  You may see things which are not conventional weapons, the property of the special effects department, a large stock of amplifiers, for instance. By all means comment – haven’t I just told the world?  Tell you what we’re going to do with them not.
      “Last – probably not actually and not certainly not least, Carlin.  For the benefit of both carlini and the dear world, this is what Carlin currently looks like. The north was a dingy brown with a big question-mark in the middle of it.  “First, yes, people have been evacuated but no surprise to them, they’ve been expecting it a long time.  The road to Azt has not been deemed a safe place to live.  They tell me in fact people had already moved south of their own accord.” The new Burunda was indicated by a vamp hanging upside down, blood trickling from its mouth.  “Varna has moved within earshot of people who previously had quiet lives!  Za-remin is a little further away from habitation.  The Army of course are here and the Fleet are as they were, ten deep offshore. Access.  You can, as you always could, fly into Car-sandis, spend three hours in Immigration and have a look round.  If you stray inland, on your head be it.  This man’s Army has better things to do than patrol for morons.  There are liable to be cats in the zone and if they trip over you they won’t be kind.  You are extremely strongly advised shall I say to stray no further inland than the outskirts of Car-sandis.  You are however free to wander the south of Carlin.  They tell me there are excellent hotels in Alusin.  You will be intelligent about this, I repeat, intelligent.  If you’re not,you may find yourselves way over your heads.  There maybe mines or other booby-traps and if you get your leg blown off don’t whine to me.” 
“That is not kind!”
“Point taken, I think point taken!”
“Before you do, I’m going to say kids.  The boundaries are on camera monitored 24/7 by civilians.  We shall therefore know if you wander in but shall not trouble ourselves to do anything about it just wait for the bang.”
“That is vicious!”
“Bit hard to disguised ourselves as tots!”
“We’re very hot on individual responsibility,” said Sarat.  “Didn’t I just say, morons are non grata.”
“That must surely have implications across the whole of Kadun.  We know all the morons have been weeded out of the military.  I am sure there may be nests elsewhere.”
“Except maybe the gender morons?  It would not seem to me you have any time for bureaucracy.”
“None,” said Sarat.
“In that of course you are very similar to our warlords.  Naturally there are matters of great gravity, war, to be traversed first, but I must say certain aspects of this strike me as very entertaining.”
“I aim to please,” said Sarat.  “Sometimes.  Just fo finish, Carlin Village. That you will see is incorporated in the set up here.  Carlini inquiring about normal functionality can fnd a lot of stuff on the Carlin site and you guys are of course free to question Sistenda and his team.  Mardis at the House is also a mine of information, as are Vishtu at the Rabbiters’ and Gerdi at the Post Office.  The post will get through no matter what.  The Flett tell me they’re trigger-happy and will probably simply sink you if you attempt unauthorized landing from the sea.  Carlin isn’t clean because mrons are given the benefit of the doubt.  That said, there is a ferry from M-P to SIvalit, with the mandatory three hours iin Immigration.
“Sarat!”
This because a picture had appeared of a capsized small craft, small flailing figures, cameras, wires, phones falling from it and many smiling sharks, saying “Yum, journos!
 “Damn it, sir, on this auspicious occasion.  Stop making us laugh!”
“I have a sense of humour,” said Sarat, “and know how to use it.  Now, has anyone conceivably any questions? Irturbi first, please.”
But someone said, “Can we see the vid again?  I think everyone needs to see it if they haven’t.”
Nobody objected.
“That’s the message, right, Begone foul spawn of desecration!”
“Message is, the boss is back!”
“In one line,” said Sarat.
“Now we know the headline, we can all go home!”
Eventually:
            “Forin, Channel Ten, Carlin.  You are Anile Emperor.  You are therefore governing the whole of Kadun, at least the whole of free Kadun, from a field in Carlin.  Would you be able to tell us how that works?”
            Everyone hooted.
            “Oh, raw cunning, techy genius, being in five places at once. Serious, guys.  As of midnight Kadun has been running under imperial law. That constitutes the ground rules.  I am not about issuing a stream of edicts!  The emperor’s stewards are of course in place, as are PANTHER. The same political structures, local and regional councils and senates, will continue to function.  The legislation binding them has changed.  Finally that impinges on everything from the drains and the state of the highway to working conditions.  We’re not going to start major public works while we’re at war. We want people talking to each other, deciding for themselves how they want things to be. CLIK has opened centres for political and social education throughout free Kadun.  The core of this is IT, computer caffs, so anyone can send an email, see all the news.  We recognize that too few people in Kadun are wired and it’s paramount everyone can have access to the Grid.  At the very least, as you know, there are a lot of screens in town centres and if people don’t themselves have TVs, the local bar does.  People can’t have views on what’s going on unless they know what’s going on.  Does that help?”
            “It does, yes.  So the agents of the revolution are PANTHER, the military – and CLIK?  An  interesting trio.”
            “A wide range of views,” agreed Sarat.
            “And you’ve got them all on board.  Achievement in itself. If I say there may and will and must be divergence, you will say elections.”
            “Consider it said.”
            “Take it the – management structure of AMI or Sohenoil is not such as to provoke knee-jerk hostility.”
            “Take it correctly.”
            “Anyas, Channel Nine, Fidub. Local question! I want to play this in real-time, Sarat – I’m sure it will play in real-time.  So you have a working-class guy.  On one side he’s happy because of health and safety.  But he’s maybe not so happy at home, his partner is getting ideas of her own.  How’s that going to work out?”
            “Divorce,” said someone.
            “I do hope not,” said Sarat.  “Depends on the guy.”
            “But there could be riots.  Guys not wanting their space invaded.”
            “Yes.  There could be.”
            “Contained by PANTHER?  Or by CLIK?  I understand this is clever.  I’m just not sure it’s clever enough to work.”
            “Thanks,” said Sarat.              “Contained by CLIK and PANTHER.  I’ll talk to anyone.  Vid link, coference call.  Some things aren’t negotiable.”
            “I’m all for this but it seems to me – a lot of it is non-negotiable?”
            “Basic human rights are non-negotiable.  Huge numbers of other things are highly negotiable.”/
            “Going back to governance.  Just thinking about ‘techy’.  Narulis didn’t have your advantages!  To fully get the hang of this, people really need to absorb you can talk the guys in the west 24/7, and of course not just talk, documents, film.  Would that be right?”
            “Yes.  A large part of the job is co-ordination, liaison. It’s not I’m telling the guys in the west what to do, it’s that they’re telling me what they are doing and so we here have the full picture.”
“Qitn, Zur Star.  Looks to me that this war is going to be a whole lot closer to the border than we figured.  And some people find our army, Dabida’s army, at the border just plain suspicious.  As in circle the Third Army for you.  There are questions of the Army’s personal allegiance to Alzani-Meta.  Comment?”
“Drivel,” said Sarat. “1.  The Constitution, 2. The Constitution.  3. 4 and 5 The Constitution.
“I understand that.  If an Army moves of its own accord – you and Maya going to arrest them for us?”
“If the Army moves in direct opposition to the Constitution – that’s not a question to me.  D’you want to put it to Tannan?
“Crown, State, People, Law, Military.  Who’s objecting?”
“Tar,” said Sarat.  “Me. Maya.  Vanya.  The people of Dabida. And of course the Kadun military but they would be otherwise engaged.  If anything that preposterous happened. I’d imagine popular fury in Dabida would haul them back, not least – I know Zur is fond of Maya, but I don’t think that extends to body-bags.”
“Exactly.  Cool stuff, Sarat, but it stays this side of the border.”
“Gilivan.  Car-sandis News.  I’m thinking - Dabidans feel the border’s been blurred?”
“How can it not be!”
“Don’t you?”
“I’m not going to speak for the whole of Carlin, never mind the whole of Kadun.  I personally don’t.”
“I think,” said Sarat, “we all know there are acreages of subtext here, ancient history, Mel’s relationship with Carlin.”
“Agreed.  Mel and Asdinan, good mates, great.  This is – a step further, he finished lamely.”
Baz cut in.
 “I am quite sure before you even start to look, you can find footage of Mel saying something like, this is everyone’s war.  Probably find Airoch doing the same.  That is because it is everyone’s war, the war of all civilized people.  Even within a nation, everyone doesn’t fight a war in the same way.  If you ask people driving buses, growing veggies, if they’re not prepared to fight, of course they are.  Somebody has to do what they’re doing.”
Sarat said: “The business of the gallant army of Dabida is defending Dabida.  I don’t find that complicated.  In one line, if we lost, if the Cult were at the border, it would be a different ball-park. That has not happened and never will happen.”
            “Only emperor in history to have proclaimed his rule on a forum!”
            “I do things my way.”
            “Did we notice?”
            “This is basically a coup and must be backed by the military as much as the Houses. Can you give us a bit of background here, whom you’ve talked to and so on.”
            “Rewn, Carlutan, Challin, Varna, the whole of the General Staff, a lot of cats and trees, CLIK in Zur.  Everything was recorded and shared with anyone who could be trusted to keep his mouth shut. Before that I was on the private PANTHER forum.   Many many more people have known what I think and engaged with it than I’ve talked to F2F.”
“Interesting.”
“Says rather a lot about the military which I think some people – we love them but we don’t necessarily have them earmarked as social radicals.  Of course this isn’t the old guard.”
“The military is the perfect pyramid construction, the bulk of any military anywhere is going to be working-class.  May I ask – have you talked to just officers?”
“No.  Mostly to the General Staff, yes.  But they talk to the guys below them, they’ve been talking to them for many years now.  They’re holding the power.  They have to get it right.”
“We all appreciate that.  Brutally we know nothing is going to happen without the consent of the guys with guns and tanks and of course squaddies have those too. We’re maybe a little shell-shocked at what has happened.  What do the squaddies say?”
Sarat couldn’t resist.
“Couple of NCOs.  A lot more guys listening in.  We were talking about a change in mores.  So, not-sir, if you were to order me to give your good lady there a right humping, I should obey with alacrity.  I said I thought it would be terribly off to order anyone to do something I ought to do myself. ”
There was a moment’s paralysed silence followed by howls.
“That must have been quite a meeting. A free and frank exchange of views, would you say.”
“Could put it like that,” said Sarat. 
“And you have convinced them the military will not collapse without – a more rigid code of behaviour?”
“Maybe not convinced but they’re happy to give it their best shot.  That’s the deal.  I don’t faff around and no-one else does, either.  They say lad has a tongue in his head and knows how to use it.”
“We have indeed noted you are not short of words!”
“I’m thinking nothing has changed and everhthing has changed.  I know what I mean!”
“I think I know what you mean,” said Sarat.  “People have rights enshrined in law.  I know things are very different in different parts of Kadun.  What will impact is demand for those rights.”
“Precisely.  My daughter is a lawyer in Car-sandis.  In some places, that is man’s work.”
“Yes,” said Sarat.  There are five, call them fronts, in the military sense.  The SF war against Corsin, the war of the regulars, freedom and democracy, poverty, disease, injustice.  And capital. Underpinning all of these is, Mitch’s word, infrastructure. You treat symptoms or you eradicate the disease.  To put it another way, if the foundations aren’t solid the house may look magnificent but it’s vulnerable to collapse. You can win the war, you can hold elections, you can make apparently impressive assaults on social injustice, but if there’s still woodworm you’re going to be countered at every turn.  As Mitch has said, this has already happened, Kadun was doing just fine, then it went backwards, because there was space for woodworm to flourish.  This is a consensus between the Houses, the military and PANTHER that rock-hard foundations should be established to give corruption and injustice no place to hide
“Zint, City Press: I have sure thought the local guys should go first but that sure is my cue.  This is one real bad hair day for certain bankers Harnside and you of course know that.  Some will say that it is hardly your immediate priority but you yourself have indicated Searc and Sar-fenan as targets.  I am wondering if you have any comment on that, not least of course because it is highly pertinent to Ciletij.
“Oh yes,” said Sarat.  “All our love to Bal.”  Zint snorted.  “As you know but many here perhaps do not, that which is desired is the destruction of the City banks without the destruction of the economy of Harn.  We think it possible and naturally I am not going to say how.  Naturally also securing the Kadun economy is a factor and – naturally – if Ciletij were to boot them out that would also be a plus.  I would point out we Kadun are entirely happy to trade with the good guys in Ciletij – or indeed in Harn – though we understand that Ciletij is in that respect between a rock and a hard place, trading bought by the City for bought by the empire!  But all these things are open to negotiation.
“And you would seriously say that, that Ciletij is bought by the city, not merely as a piece of – propaganda.”
“Supply the facts and figures,” said Sarat.  “Ask the Press Office.”
“So you would say Kadun is open for business.”
“While being on the verge of war,” said Sarat.  “But that war will not disrupt electronic communication.  I would certainly say we are open to ideas, innovation, preliminary discussion, fact-finding missions, getting to know one another.  Var-sega’ of course already has substantial links across the water.”
“gong back to what my colleague said about Ciletij having evaded solution, it has been said that one reason for that is that southern capital is perceived as being in hock to Sohenoil.”
“A lot of things have been said,” said Sarat.  “A fair number of them are the dumbest of dumbfuck crap, but you are a free Press it is your sacred role to sift the facts – not that that’s hard, they’re all on the Grid.”
“There would seem to be a number of things there…”
“Not toning it down, Sarat, just an itsy-bitsy bit!”
“Call it as I see it.”
“To haver is one thing.  To question the integrity of the Public Audit Office is frankly something we in Dabida do not appreciate. To hear some of them,you’d think the whole of the south had been bought by Sohenoil!”
“And pigs have wings,” said Sarat.  “Sohenoil cold be bought out.  You have to understand the core of this.  Sohenoil isn’t hated and reviled and slandered because of empire, but because it pays PANTHER.  Azt would do anything to destroy Sohenoil.”
“It does WHAT?”
“Ah.”  He explained
That took some time to settle but eventually someone said, “And of course there is a great deal of independent money here in Kadun.”
“So naturally PANTHER is imperial!  This is – we have to say we do not know exactly what this is.  This is PANTHER’s coup, PANTHER values, Narulis’ values.”
“I know it’s – I was going to say complicated,” said Sarat. “Many-layered.  Cho has still been a democratic politician in the Republic of Fidub for 30 years.  Sure, the Dabidan model, but Fidub stays clean without monarchy.  PANTHER are on Planet Clean, not Planet Empire.  This is a rather good way of establishing clean, in the situation at present.  Put it another way, I really see myself far more as dynamic young revolutionary but I happen to be Narulis’ heir.  It’s a bit hard for NArulis’ heir to stage a coup and not be emperor.  The stake in Kadun, why it matters to me, the authority to act, being heard, all that comes from being Narulis’ heir not AN Other brash Fidubi brat.”
“Just another damn’ Fidubi loudmouth!  It does make sense but it’s still crazy  I want to say it was a very long time ago but you are so obviously the modern world.  I guess the question is what does it mean to be Narulis’ heir in the modern world and I am sure that will unfold before us!”
“IT means,” said Sarat, “the same to all of us, it means what it means to Mel or to Maya to be Zani’s heir.  Everything we are comes from two guys who said No, all the privilege, influence.  Sort of the job description, saying no, representing no.  Neither Maya nor I think there’d be much point in us if we say, oh has Kadun got a problem with the Cult, nothing to do with us, don’t expect us to get involved. 
“If I say Kadun has had a problem with the Cult for some time – I do not know how long you have been involved and before that you were  at school!  How old are you, Sarat?”
“22.”
“If I say your role is calling dumbfuck crap, that is probably as good an age as any!  All the same a certain maturity, hard decisions.”
“Like the venerable and grey-haired government of Ciletij maybe?”
“That may be a little below the belt!”
“Sure, to be clear about certain basics isn’t everything.  But it does help.”
“How very much of politics is fudging.”
“This is a fudge-free zone,” said Sarat.
“Many a politician has surely started out with the best intentions and found things more complicated than they at first appear.”
“Then we untangle the knot.”
“It’s our view in Dabida,” said Gallia, “add five years to the biological age, Mel, Hass, all of them.  They’ve been hearing the politics of the continent since their playpens and mixing it in the Saa’anda Senta since they could walk.”
“I think there must be a very great deal in that.”
“Does 27 sound better?”
“I am thinking also that if men several years your senior were required to call you sir and defer to you that might be a source of difficulty but since they are not.   You have said and it is scarcely possible to overestimate the importance of it, this is not government by your whim but in accordance with imperial law.”
“Everyone is bound by imperial law including me. It’s generally described as first among equals.”
He recalled words from the forum.  “To some extent empire was – possibly is! – a front to the external world.  You want to try this on, dudes. You’re facing an empire, a united Kadun.  I am not about running around telling people what to do.  Unless they’re in Azt of course.”
“Somewhere between a figurehead and a ruler - Firas has said he is Head of PANTHER and you are the PR guy!  Can you elaborate on that?”
“Part of the JD, representing catdom.  Who speaks for these crazed felines?  I do.”
“Essentially then Kadun is being run by PANTHER!”
“Kadun is being run on the values of the empire, which are those of PANTHER.” said Sarat.
“So women, gays, that’s now the law.  But presumably you are making no immediate changes to the military.”
“Hi, Corsin, just talk amog ourselves while we train women.  No immediate changes.”
“But you must have discussed it with the guys.”
“There has been a very great deal of discussion, including wtith the southern military.”
“Wow!  This is really rocking, right?”
“An in-depth discussion with a female fighter pilot reaches a lot of places airy theorizing – on both sides – does not.”
“I think we can see – not only see but be assured that – a very great deal of thought lies behind this enterprise.  One has only to look at the Grid-site to see that.”
“Truly you have had guys talking with the gallant Army of Dabida.”
“Stripy socks came into it lots.  Of course Fidub has other sartorial standards.”
A lot of people collapsed with laughter.
“No, I do not see our noble military espousing stripy socks any time soon!”
“Keep your Fidubi superiority to yourself!”
“As some of you know, there is a private PANTHER forum for the good guys, private mainly to keep it free of rats, of course an online plague. Firas allowed a number of people from FAF from the Dabidan military, gay and stratight, male and female, and a good time was had by all.  Additionally they’ve met F2F.”
“Fly on the wall!  Any chance if we ask Firas really nicely he’d let us see at least some of it?”
“Not fair on the guys.”
“OK…You do understand this is just totally freaking amazing.  And presumably you’ve been discussing everything else as well.”
“With the plague-pits of Vaudos in the way naturally the simplest way for one half of Kadun to talk to the other is online.  Of course I can get around more and have got around.”
“Anonymize it.  A, B and C said so and so…”
“Possibility.  Very much the job is co-ordinating, liaising.  I am not telling the guys how to fight the war but I am asking that everyone keeps me informed so far as possible so that someone or ones has the full picture.
“I understand of course that the Press did not exist in Narulis’ day.  I would be most interested to know what statutes of imperial law govern the arrangements we have here.”
“Importunate crowds did,” said Sarat.  “Bullies did.  Morons did. And of course protection of genuinely confidential information did, information that would assist the enemy.  Imperial law knew a good deal about war with the Cult.  The weapons have changed.  The uniforms have changed.  Human nature has not changed.  I’ll ask Mitch to put it on the site.”
“You said the emperor had very few special powers.  So long as they don’t include impaling journalists!  What are they?”
“The powers of all military commands.  Presiding judge at the imperal court.  The right to commute sentences laid down by a lower court.”
“That’s it?  Seriously, that’s it?”
“That is it.  Two baselines here.  One is that imperial law is essentially a masterclass on how to behave to your fellow citizens.  Essentially all varieties of human shittiness are covered.  If you pass information to the enemy, the medium isn’t specified so electronically is covered.  All Dabidan law is derived from imperial law; there may be particular examples of shittiness that we don’t feel successfully covered, probably electronic; in that case frankly happy to pinch from Dabidan law. The legal eagles have fine tooth-combed such that in case of challenge they can show every step of the way in which faced with modern problems solution was directly derived from imperial law.  While certainly they had financial malpractice in ancent times, they ddin’t have the global economy. What matters, as you know, is that it is ratified law, not just made upon the spur of the moment.”
“WSo you could give orders to the military if you wanted to.  Presumably – mores, calling you sir or rather not is of the nature of an order.”
“The military are expected to exhibit the values of the empire and are accountable to me Deference is not among those values!  If someone wants to call me or anyone else sir that’s down to him.  The law backs him if he doesn’t want to – that didn’t take long, did it.”
Onto the screen flashed LIVE FROM AZT.
“They just wanted to see what you had to say,” said Baz.
“We call her the Spider,” said Sistenda.
Yeutch, thought people.
A round-faced woman wearing round spectacles tha failed to flatter but a well-cut suit of dark red and stud silver earrings, made up to look natural.
“Good morningIt is our understanding there are certain children’s theatricals in Carlin. Clearly my lord Var-sega' has a remarkable talent for marketing for assuredly they play to a full house. My lords, my ladies, it hardly becomes you.
And where the fuck is this going? thought all
“We trust governance by grown-ups may now prevail. Really, children, return to your play-pens! Your homework, indeed.           Coursework I presume.. Not of course that you need concern yourselves about future employment. How touching, the concern of Sohenoil and AMI for the poor. My lords, my ladies, they wish their fine houses palaces of the people, a redistribution of capital?        I think not.           My lords, my ladies, your estates await you.
“We at least would not stoop to examining the affairs of Madam President, financial and otherwise, but certainly we do not hesitate to ask what benefit Sohenoil and AMI might think to accrue from this mad charade. I believe in commercial circles there is a saying: all publicity is good publicity? Really, this nonsense about women.Do I look oppressed? I thought better of my lady Var-sega’ [Karula had made her views plain for the Grid-site.] A little gratitude is perhaps in order.        Indeed she attended the Schools and what enabled a woman of really rather humble origins so to do but a government scholarship. Are such the actions of an oppressive and misogynist State.  You must decide.        We must of course distinguish between a simple equality between men and women and the somewhat febrile doctrines of Van-senok.           We state plainly the common belief of humanity: children require care.   That that care is best provided by their mothers we think unexceptionable.Who does not? Or my lady Var-sega’ indulged her flair for marketing, my lord house-husband, I believe the term current in the south? It is my misfortune to have no children - “
“Probably eat them,” muttered Sistenda.
“ - but certainly I should consider the cultivation of growing minds a more rewarding occupation indeed than addressing the follies we have seen today.           Surely the purpose of schooling is preparation for adulthood.     We do not for a moment deny we think boys and girls have different needs. That is not to say the intellectual content of the curriculum should differ.  Or you  think joinery more taxing than the chemistry of nutrition or balancing the household budget?
“We do not deny the existence of poverty in Kadun.      We must ask ourselves how plausible it is my lords, my ladies surrender their power for good, or indeed bend the knee
to a rusting throne.  We enjoy good theatre.  Even the best performances come to an end.  Nor are we fools and assuredly this is a charade.          
“We feel it only just to repay my lords my ladies for the performance by displaying two of the works by one of the greatest living Kadun artists, Smudge.  Truly, we are not barbarians.
People who saw PANTHER move at that point became convinced humans could travel at the speed of light. Carlin froze in horror. As mouthed, “The fool, the fool!”  Smudge had remained within reach of Azt. Sarat was coming towards him.  Sarat said, “We’ll sort it,” and didn’t add, if it’s sortable.  Not many people were enjoying two of Smudge’s exquisite but more anodyne works, a drawing of an eagle and a landscape, since carlini were full of consternation and dread and everyone else was trying to understand that.
Onto every screen in the world flashed AZT LAUNCHES ALL-OUT ATTACK  CANIBA BASE UNDER ATTACK and then  HQ LAUSANINE UNDER ATTACK.  SIBA BASE UNDER ATTACK.  TRIFENTIN UNDER ATTACK.
Gallia got it.  She looked at Sarat’s face and thought he’d probably got it too.
In distant V-k Maya got it.
“I seem to be in command of the western empire.  A girl has to have a job.”  Vannina snorted.  “We’re going to do this by the book.”  She realized she needed to explain about Smudge, though when it came to it she had woefully little information, had no idea where he lived, if he was in reach of Azt.  Division of labour: Sarat’s problem.
Baz issued a further caterwaul.
Sarat said: “There is no reason to think these attacks any more successful than they have been previously.  Maya’s the girl on the ground.  Smudge is possibly our problem here in Carlin.  PANTHER are on the case.  Lot to say to Azt.  I don’t like being rudely interrupted.”
Asdinan spoke.
“Smudge is the father of the mother of my son.  He wouldn’t leave his home.”
            He explained that Smudge lived on a barren northern peninsula and sopossibly in reach of Azt.
            “Tell you about the eviction order,” said Sarat.
            He’s not even pretending to do something.  Mel looked at surrounding Zuri and thought the whole world is paralysed by what is not happening.  Someone else is in charge of this one.
            “He’ll wait to hear from Maya, right, Mel.”
            Sarat said in extremely cool and distant tones: “The thing raised the question of imperial property.  We are taking nothing in either cash or kind.  Someone asked Maya about the Severin Rubies.  We are not planning a social whirl!  It is extremely unlikely there is any event on the horizon demanding rubies, but if there were museums lend.  But the creature is correct in claiming there is a great deal of imperial property in Azt..  We thought we’d give it to the people of Kadun.  Homes for disabled kids or the elderly and infirm, people space, computer caffs indeed.  What is fun is the current residents.  Most of it is some Ministry for Desecration or other.   In particular we own a truly magnificent row of houses on the waterfront, 25-40 Galena.  Corsin HQ.  Look forward to serving the eviction order.”
You – own.  It was said, hyperbole of course that throughout Kadun people turned in slow motion.
In V-s Karula was saying, “I too have much to say in response to what strangely in large part was an attack on me.  The bulk may wait until we are clearer but the creature cannot get right the simplest fact.  Certainly I had a government scholarship but not from the present inhabitants of Azt.”
“Laughable,” said Mitch.  “All may rest assured Heela is not about to turn the House into a people’s palace.  Shares indeed have risen, such is the confidence that CHoit-ban-warna’s grandson is not about to abolish capital.”
“If that’s all they’ve done,” Venon had said.
“The best they can do is embarrassment?”
More concerned with family than with the fate of irturbi.
Phones had begun ringing.  Trajectories were swiftly drawn on maps.  It was reported the press-fiends outside were yowling with fury as the news filtered through to phones.
Maya asked: “Are there any Ciletij there?”
Venon looked up sharply.
“I’ll check.”
 “A warning,” said Saban.
Venon traced a line on the map to the Ciletij industrial complex at Tusan.
And so, they were muttering into their mics in Carlin, the focus has abruptly shifted from here in Carlin to the far side of the continent, to Maya Talal ban-essa, Anile Empress, Mistress of Kadun, in Van-senok…
Bombed? Kids? Vaudos?
“Clearly they have excelled themselves,” said Sarat. 
The screen filled with the fair amount of mayhem at the gates of the Sardun camp.  We are told Her Imperial Majesty will be with us any moment now, just checking the facts….
Maya picked up her phone.
“Just calling Carlutan.  Can someone tell the Press I’ll be with them in just two ticks.”
“Yawn,” said Carlutan.  “They had to try.”  Then he listened.  “Of course.”  Sardun exchanged quiet smiles. 
Venon checked his texts.
“Standard are The Times of Ciletij, the G-T Gazette and Ciletij Live!  Stringers hang around Vaconik and report on the neighbours.  He read further and grinned.  “Visa office is a little inundated but it takes time.”
“Four or five,” suggested Maya.  “What’s Ciletij Live!”
“Progressive mag, based in earthpower.”
“I think we need to explain,” said Vannina.
“Oh.  Yes.  Baseline was let no-one new in.  Some communities have had links since the year dot.  We triple-checked all the Ciletij who were here, kicked out a few and went on business as usual.”
The gates were opened for the truck to pass through with dire warnings to press-fiends they’d be ruthlessly mown down, but instead of proceeding on its way the truck stopped just outside the gates.  Five heavily armed members of Sardun got out, all female, followed by Maya. This is not subtle!  Yammer. Spring leant on the horn. Maya sat on the bonnet of the truck and waited.
 “Sssh!” said Jaizi.  “Arbit-lal tunin! Irtubi for please be quiet.”
Squawks of senoki laughter. 
“Vita, saborna!  Irturbi for yes, ma’am!  It’s a bit cruder than that.  Shut your faces!”
“They’ve murdered kids!”
“Yes,” said Maya.  “Right, we’ve talked to Carlutan, Nodsi, Divaldin and Tisindar.  From the military point of view, these attacks were a non-event, failed as they have failed before. So they bombed Vaudos instead.  Best the sick, sad losers of Azt can do, murder children. 
We have to ask ourselves, the point was what?  The price of empire is vaudosi are slaughtered. When children engage in theatricals, people die in real life.  Must the children not learn a hard lesson? Why we must take Azt at least is clear to the world.  And of course: ‘They came, the skull-faces, but we laughed.’  ‘They came, the skull-faces, but we laughed.’  Do I feel like laughing?  I do not.  It is a paradox that Azt remains a joke, a sick joke but a joke, a travesty of what it means to be human. This is Azt which mewls in the Federation about the legitimate government of Kadun, Azt that terrorizes mutilates tortures murders, Azt indeed that wears clothes and stands on its hindlegs.  There is a saying in Carlin, Never ask them to strip.” Carlini were observed attempting to retain grave and serious demeanour.  “It derives from this.  Cartoon strip in three frames.  Two onlookers, one saying to the other ‘Never ask them to strip!” observing 1, a trio or Corsin officers, foul but magnificent in black leather.  2.  This trio apparently relaxing at the end of the day’s work about to remove helmet, jacket, boots. 3.  Legs, feet torsos disintegrating into a foul blood strained mucosal ooze forming a puddle around them.
 Such military power as Azt possesses is centred in the Third Army in Vaudos.  If Azt wants them to surrender, murdering their partners, children, parents, seems a good way of achieving that.  Azt is claiming error by trainee pilots.  That’s not a trick they can pull twice.
And of course I say to those in Vaudos – Azt is for what you will fight and possibly die?  There is a better way to live.  It’s called being human.
I think there’s a second message.   FAF has been evicted from Ciletij.  As we all know, there are two Ciletij Air Fleets, C for Cult and C for Cool. The C for Cult Ciletij Air Fleet only has to stay on the ground for Ciletij civilians to suffer equivalent devastation.  So I think it was an – injunction to Ciletij to toe the line, and of course a reminder of the possibility that with Kadun lost the Cult might attempt Ciletij as a consolation prize.  Nothing is more critical than repair of relations between Fidub and Ciletij.
[“Clever girl,” said Carlutan, “clever, clever girl!” sublimely indifferent to those who might consider that not merely disrespectful but, far worse, sexist.  Skyhawk grinned.  Others  were less reticent.  “You stupid cunts, you stupid, stupid, cunts, bloody sitting ducks, you bloody  stupid cunts.”]
“Since we’re the cause of the rift between Ciletij and the south, there isn’t anything we can do about it.  However, rather obviously, we can do something phenomenal to help Ciletij and that is take Azt, remove the threat. The notion that Sarat and I represent the threat is – vexing.”
Unfortunately the camera did not cut to Ciletij fliers jumping up and down and proclaiming, No vexing!  That is an order! Vexing – just don’t do it and other indices of yeah, we’d worked that out, thank every tree spirit in the forest someone has fucking said it.
I  suspect that we are supposed to be mortified by our inability to protect Vaudos.  Of course it’s upsetting to be unable to defend the innocent but we have never claimed to be capable of protecting Vaudos.  From the military perspective Vaudos is the enemy.  Vaudos equally is home to many men now serving in Var-sega’ and Carlin and to them as to vaudosi themselves claims of empire are perhaps supposed to ring hollow. But empire is another – an older – name for All-Kadun and to speak of All-Kadun in this situation equally hollow. Over the last months and years, Sarat and I have spoken to many irturbi and they have said, We are Kadun.  Kadun must once again be whole. Empire represents among other things a commitment to that unity but we have not achieved it yet and the relatiolnship between Vaudos and Var-sega, between vaudosi and segani is no different today from yesterday.  Only by defeating the Cult can Kadun be whole and all know as they knew yesterday there will be casualties along the way.”
“But it’s not enough to say, that’s war.  Even war has crimes and the massacre of civilians is a war-crime.  Imperial Kadun has as yet no seat at the Federation.  Indeed Azt works diligently to demand the Federation act against us.  I have spoken to Airoch and Vanya on two counts.  Dabida and Fidub are happy to raise the slaughter of children in the Federation.  The ties between Ciletij and the south are many and not readily severed.  Azt has gambled on the mutual defence pact being dead.  It isn’t.  Airoch would not countenance the murder of Ciletij civilians. 
“Sarat and I send our love to the injured and bereaved and also more practical help.  Lightning strikes can work both ways and Carlutan’s guys are dropping medical and other emergency supplies, blankets, torches and food in Vaudos.
There is this to be said to Azt.  You are gallows-bait, history.”
 
            “Ten, nine, eight…” said Vanya.  Countdown to the explsion from Gula-Toon.
            “Our little Maya,” said Tonudin. “Zeshazesh.”
 
“I do not detect,” said Bal through gritted teeth, “any note of panic there from the little lady.”  A lot of people had got it.
“Bal, she’s so cute!”
That didn’t improve Bal’s temper either. 
“The propaganda war.”
“So one-sided it’s funny.  What have they got to play, Bal?  It’s a stacked deck.”
 
“Order, ladies and gentlemen, order!”  The proceedings of the Ciletij Senate naturally are televised.  Order is not prevailing.
 
            Those who knew Sarat well knew only the gravity of the occasion was stopping him smirking.
            “Good, isn’t she,” he said.
            “The diplomatic department, Sarat!”
           
            Karula cursed herself for feeling suddenly mentally if not physically dizzied. 
            “Mitch….”
            Mitch shrugged.
            “So the first real challenge was handled by a woman.”
           
            “Ycula, The Isles.  I am not sure if I should laugh or cry.  So Azt can drag Fidub into this war.  I guess it would be pretty painless, just FAF?”
            Sarat said: “There are so many warships out there – “ He gestured vaguely in the direction of the ocean. “ – that it’s funny.  A lot of them are Fidubi carriers.  The Imperial Fleet would undoubtedly be delighted to escort them should they turn north.”
            “Aah-ooh!”
           
            Cantilip in the middle of Vaconik shouted, “Three cheers for Her Imperial Majesty!” 
            Probably hear it in G-T, said people with some satisfaction.
           
I am standing here in Viyrini Square in Gula-Toon and people are coming out onto the streets. Opposite the Senate Building is the College of Design and a group of kids are putting a banner up on the railings which says simply NO NO NO NO NO.  Someone else is holding up a placard CULT OUT NOW!  And another one FIDUBI RULES, OK!  I thnk this is not a good day for the government…I spke to a middle-aged gentleman, who said he was a surveyor, and he said, No-one’s asking if she’s right because everyone bloody knows she’s right!..What I am woefully failing to detect is any note of shock, any conviction the Ciletij military is united in its commitment to democracy.  The mask is truly ripped off. 
 
            “Three cheers for Maya-ban-essa!” The trouble with that someone shouted it in the middle of G-T and the cheers were heard in the Senate.
 
Maya began a tour of Kadun’s valiant defenders but not before creating further mayhem in Ciletij.
“WE in Kadun have to understand a split in the military – “ Interjections of freaking world experts and similar sentiments.  “ – so do you think Ciletij could go the way of Kadun?”
“That is for Ciletij to decide,” said Maya.  “There’s no basic sane reason we can’t all be friends.  What is also basic is that knee-jerk hostility means we cannot do anything at all to helpl  I just ask Ciletij to remember Tonsa!  And who the hell is Tonsa?  Tonsa is a large pink fluffy toy bunny-wabbit.  When I was about ten my father had to represent Tar at something or other in Gula-Toon and Varchulan gave me Tonsa.  Hey guys, remember me, I’m Tar’s niece.  I’m Zani’s heir.  I am here in Kadun because of what that means to me, which as Sarat has said is you don’t do nothing.  You don’t sit on your hands,ooh nothing to do with me.  I have not subsequently turned into a fanged ogre.  Let Tonsa stand as a symbol of friendship between our two great nations.  She’s a Ciletijj rabbit, a sensible bunny.”
“There can be no sane reasonable person who can’t see Kadun is not about to invade Ciletij to save her from the Cult!  So that’s right across the board, presumably economically too.  Sarat has said – facts, figures, Ciletij bought by the Cult, but I guess if you’re Ciletij Ciletij bought by empire is not exactly….We have heard something about the dumbest of dumbfuck crap!  `Clearly now in some eyes southern capital is tainted beyond repair.”
“Just remember Tonsa!” yelled someone.
They yelled that in G-T too.
There was apparently one sole Ciletij in the gathering in V-k and since she was a young woman with dark green streaks in her red hair she possibly wasn’t typical.  After three failed attempts to get heard she simply yelled, “I’m Ciletij!  Want to say something!”  She obtained a degree of quiet.  Maya looked intent.  “We are not all stupid!  We value our links with the south.  The last thing any sane Ciletij wants is to be cut off.”
Yes, exactly, said the Ciletij in Carlin.  Some people didn’t totally understand the geography and there was a great deal of looking at maps on phones and waving them in front of other people.  Paw found a map of the east of Ciletij and projected it.  Baz sounded the caterwaul.
Arbit-lal, tunin!  I’ll remember that.
What the - !  All turned to the west gazing at the skies above.  A group of Za-remin’s fliers had displayed initiative, taken flight and were now sky-writing.  Surr- must be surrender.  Surrender to Sarat!
 
 “May I speak!” said Sistenda loudly. “This is a historic day for Kadun.  If we in Carlin have a message for Vaudos, it’s as Maya said, we are Kadun. Vaudos is not an alien foreign nation for which reason above all to come full circle Ciletij must stay out.  Irturbi fighting irturbi is bad enough.  This is something we have to resolve and attempt to heal by ourselves.”
“Found it!” muttered Baz.  He projected.  “There!”  It was a map of ancient Kadun, the five Houses united by a silver coronet running through them.  “Five kingdoms united by the imperial crown.”
The opening bars of the imperial anthem sounded from someone’s phone.  Irturbi jumped up, Sarat jumped up, others looked around questioning, ‘Imperial anthem!” muttered people.  Oh, OK.
LIVE FROM GULA-TOON!
Oh, OK.  Possibly as well.  The tune is a catchy one and has survived history but very few people have the faintest idea of the words.
Sarat shook his head.  Laters!
“Hear what they have to say for themselves.”
LIVE FROM GULA-TOON!  THE PRESIDENT OF CILETIJ
Arms of Ciletij, basically a pair of bears apparently holding up an eagle, with lots of curlicews.
Varchulan sat at a plain desk with several high-ranking officers behind him.  Their expressions were pronounced unreadable. 
“The integrity of both the Government of Ciletij and our people has been mischievously called into question in front of the entire continent.  This is wholly unacceptable behaviour.”
“Go to the back of the class, Maya!” From someone in Carlin, who might have been Gallia.
“Naturally we support the furtherance of human rights in Kadun and cannot for a moment condone assault on civilians but it remains our understanding that these were as stated the consequence of traineed pilots compounded by faulty navigational equipment and in no way intended.  To use tragedy to score political points is really hardly seemly behaviour and I thought better of Maya Talal, as she was.  There can of course be no continuation of – imperium in Kadun and we in Ciletij shall work through the appropriate diplomatic channels to achieve that.  We are holding dialogues with Fidub, Vasucula and Dabida and assuredly this storm in a teacup can rapidly be contained. A headstrong young man has clearly let an accident of birth go to his head!  I cannot think that his words are condoned by the adult among us.  It is alas clearly understood here in Ciletij, as elsewhere among the informed, that Alzani-Meta is now hand-in-glove with Kadun and the neutrality of the Crown of Dabida can no longer be relied upon.  Clearly the ancient forces of feudalism and capital have been at work here but the elected governments of Dabida, Fidub and Vasucula mut surely as do we live in the modern world. Dabida must ask herself serious questions concerning whether she wishes to sever economic ties with Ciletij. Claims to transparency can of course be taken with a pinch of salt.  Who can possibly say what monies have changed hands?”
“I do not believe he said that!”
Jaws dropped.  Some Dabidans burst out laughing. 
Varchulan had continued.
“These behaviours have caused needless discord and distress here in Ciletij and cannot possibly be condoned.  I ask those who have demonstrated or protested to think carefully about what information they are acting on and whether they are not indeed being grossly manipulated.  We are a peaceful country who wishes no harm to any of our neighbours.  Fear-mongering of a most grotesque kind has emanated from Carlin and we can only question what may be the motive. There is no question whatever of a division among us.”
People held out their hands flat in front of their eyes and wiggled their fingers mimicking the gesture of a puppet-master.  Cartoons had those impassive military pointing a concealed weapon at Varchulan’s spine.
Mel had migrated to the Saa’anda Senta and sat taking on all comers and pretending to drink cold beer.  Not many people were fooled.  Tar’s baby boy does not drink on duty.
“Our little Maya!  Your little Maya.  You must be really proud of her, Mel.”
“It’s the job,” said Mel.
“There may be rather a lot there – Narulis’ heir, Zani’s heir.”
“A whole weight of history…”
Informative aside.   Maya is usually described as and thought of as little Maya.  She is actually not that small, it’s rather that Mel and Vij are large. 
“Smudge, Mel?”
“There’s no news yet.”
“They’re not going to cap it by murdering a great artist!”
People now turned to Mel. WTF!  Direct attack on A-M!
“Vanya stuff,” said Mel. Clamour continued but others nodded: questioning the integrity of the Public Audit Office was defo Vanya stuff. “Reply on behalf of A-M at my leisure.  I am of course representing Tar.”
Whoops!
“OK,” said Vanya, “he had to spew some crap.  What matters is what he says to Airoch.”
“That has to be answered, Vanya!”
“It was actually quite clever,” said the Minister of Health.
“Oh.  Yes.  No soft targets.   Not exactly diplomatic.”
“Like Sarat, you mean!”
“Not a word about Fidub, not a syllable.  We just don’t matter, do we.”
“I think,” said Vanya,  “if I  just step outside.”  Literally outside was his noble and sleep-deprived PA.  She silently handed him a coffee so strong it didn’t really need a mug to support it.  He sipped and grinned.  “No alcohol?” 
“Trade with Ciletij,” said the amazing and unsung. “Here’s  a summary.”
“Wonderwoman!  We have never needed them. Right now we don’t want them either.”
He made his way out of the building.
And that of course was a concerted attack not on Sarat, not even on empire but on the Crown and Government of Dabida and what can possibly have been gained thereby but here we have Vanya on the steps of the Senate and I have to say he looks absolutely livid
LIVE FROM ZUR: THE PRIME MINISTER
“Lot of stuff from G-T, Vanya!  Take it you want to comment.”
“At length,” said Vanya.  “Let us first deal with the purely practical.  We have no wish to sever ties with our many friends, contacts, colleagues and trading partners in Ciletij.  Were they to sever any ties in what I describe bluntly as a fit of pique, there is no economic threat to Dabida.  We are not dependent.”
“Ciletij steel is of course famous throughout the world, not merely the continent but historically simple geography has meant we never relied on Ciletij.  The sea as we know is not your friend and going back centuries of course there was trade with Ciletij but not dependency.  Dabida neither starved nor suffered in any other fashion if a ship foundered with all hands. We in the south assumed ourselves a discrete entity.”
“That’s kind of wow, Vanya.  There’s so much history in all this.”
“Hey, we can always live on fish!”
“You mean we don’t?”
“With the development of heavy industry,” continued Vanya, “clearly the import of the large and heavy was senseless – a category ranging from aircraft to plant to domestic refrigeration.  High-end refrigeration they certainly supply but it is not a need.  I myself have a  Shield freezer but were it to die both Vasucula and Fidub manufacture more than adequate replacements. We import a huge variety of non-foodstuffs from them, from T-shirts to cutlery, but the word is need and Ciletij is the sole supplier of none of it.”
“I think we can cope with Fidubi forks!  But what about them, Vanya.  I know we export food, like AMI export food! They don’t grow much, right?  Don’t want them to starve!”
“If anyone’s going to cut ties – Tar cannot be feeling flattered right now.”
“I am sure AMI will not act out of – pique.”  I  hope I am. “Larger issues have been raised concerning the integrity of my government, the integrity of public accounts, which indeed are best dismissed with a pinch of salt, but scarcely induce affection for Ciletij.   We, the Government of Dabida, in the situation the continent has found itself, also said and say no.  We were elected to represent Dabida’s no.  This poses certain difficulties to those who remain our good friends in Ciletij but it cannot be any other way.  I hear from Gula-Toon that Alzani-Meta is ‘irretrievably biased’.  So of course they are, and so of course are we.  It is not a matter of huge import.  As Maya has said in another context, beneath the hot air some situations are unchanged. Relations in the Quadrant have been uncertain for many years now.  This situation is not Sarat’s doing, but rather  he is the catalyst that has brought it to wider attention.  Gula-Toon attempts to play both sides and fails.  Certain these sordid assaults on both the government and A-M cut no ice.”
“I think you left something out.  Fidub produces a lot of fruit, right, we all do, but we might just suffer shortages if there was interference with our trade with Carlin.”
“Of course,” said Vanya.  “I would point out also that Harn is knocking on the door.  Luxury goods that have crossed half Ciletij then travelled by ship the length of the continent are no cheaper to import than those that cross the ocean and are freely available in the west.  I know Zur is Zurcentric but has been pointed out Zur is not the entirety of Dabida.”
“Eek.  We going to have lots of Harni salespersons?”
“Could be,” said Vanya.  “We are a rich country and a lucrative market.”
“And if we in turn are seeking new markets,
We have to go now to the Sa’anda SEnta, wherer Mel has been joined by both Vij and Sarshi and Hass and Venga and in particular our ultra-cool Vij, who is of course Maya’s brother, looks extremely displeased. 
“This is official Mel, on behalf of Tar.”
“On behalf of all of us.  Tar and Saski, Pietri and Caluna have all vamoosed.  In part they do not wish to be bothered by questions of the ilk of whether Maya was a good baby, but for us in Dabida, there are also more serious issues.  So I hope you are listening carefully.”
“But were you a good baby!”
“Maybe you should introduce yourselves for the sake of the dear world.  I know people sometimes confuse Vij and Mel.  Of course Vij is far better looking.”
“I shall ignore that!” said Mel.  “Mel Talal.  Sun.  Air.  Will eventually rain. My brother Hass and his partner Venga, my cousin Vij, Maya’s brother, and his partner Sarshi.”
“About the reigning.  Tar isn’t intending to abdicate, is he. I’m thinking Cho has handed it all to Sarat - ?”
“this some kind of a trial-run?”
“I think I’d be the first to know,” said Mel.  “No intention.”
“Dabida breathes again!”
It was the first time a lot of irturbi had seen the full line-up.  For that matter it was the first time Ciletij had seen the full line-up.  Wow! said some.  Others sighed heavily.  Impressive-looking young men.
“Here are the five of us.  The three of us who are A-M by birth are male.  The two who are not are irturbi.  What does Varchulan expect, that we diminish and denigrate the little girl who is Vij’s baby sister?  We are all Zani’s heirs.  Sarat indeed has said what that means.  We sit here and say no.  It’s our job.  If Maya were here, it would be her job.  She has found somewhere else to say no and superbly good at it she of course is.  We do not do neutral.  That is what G-T expects of Zani’s heir, that she dissemble, prevaricate, fudge, soothe Azt’s ruffled feathers?  Claim wrong is right, evil is good, as they do?  Doubtless in their fantasy world Corsin are just regular guys and it would make absolutely no difference to Carlin if they were left to walk right in.  Kadun knows better, Sarat and Maya know better. We know better.”
“Or in other words!  AMI, Mel, that was a direct attack.”
“We noticed. There have been calls in Ciletij to boycott us.  A pity if Ciletij eat less fruit but I am sure the boycotters have made arrangements to supply the vits from elsewhere.”
“Mel!”
“Ciletij has a pharmaceutical industry.  They must make vitamin supplements.”
“Grain of truth, Mel?  A united and prospering Kadun is potentially a very large market.”
“Sure, but you don’t have to look much further than where the fruit comes from!   Any go-ahead carlini could start exporting direct to Ciletij.  Kadun has had a few problems which have diminished her economic power.  In some places manufacture has been curtailed or turned away from consumer goods to armaments.  In other places it’s agriculture curtailed.  A free united and prospering Kadun probably doesn’t need any of us.  Certainly she represents a market for our goods and services as indeed she does those of Ciletij but to stress Vanya’s word need.  No, Kadun doesn’t need us.”
“Vanya has already spoken,” said Vij.  “I trip on no constitutional toes to say loudly and forecefully Dabida does not do neutral.    I do not think I have ever in my life heard a piece of infected bullshit like that just pooped by dear Varchulan.”
“Next up,” said Sarshi, “they do Azt’s bidding and march into Kadun?  The icing on the cake, the cream-topping.”
“Do not mince your words, Vij!  I do not think we need furrow our brows over how Sarat will call it! That of course is an understandable personal view. Nonetheless many of us in Dabda, in the whole of the south, have long-standing contacts and friends in Ciletij who must feel themselves rather horribly caught in the middle.”
“I would add for the benefit of the dear world that strong language is in fact rare from Alzani-Meta and though they lounge here I do not think I am mistaken in thinking they are livid!”
“Not mistaken,” said Vij.
Mel said: “As Vanya has said, it’s a long-standing situation.  As many of us know, despite the free movement of people enshrined in the statutes of the Quadrant, we have instituted border controls for Ciletij, to the considerable fury of G-T.  If you were welcome in Dabida yesterday, you are welcome today.”
Sarsh said: “There is a basic I think not everyone in the south understands. It’s been raised in Carlin and I’m going to stress it again. This is a civil war, not a war against men wearing a different unfirom and speaking a different language from a different part of the globe. It is a sad and complex internal matter. All of us know vaudosi are not fanged monsters.  All of us I hope feel from those injured and killed in Vaudos as you would feel if some disaster befell Batna-kri.  There’s something more.  If you talk to the imperial military, as you will do, they’ll tell you they left some  basically decent guys behind in Vaudos.  Maybe they were weak or scared, but they’re not all evil.  It can’t be said too often that surrendering to the emperor is a very different thing from surrendering to Carlin, or for that matter Var-sega’.”
 “Kinda like,” said someone in Zur, but gave up on what it was kinda like.
“The emperor is Kadun, right?  Different.”
“So seriously Sarshi, you’d expect overtures to be made to Sarat?”
“Yes.  Not everyone, that would be ridiculous and OTT, but – overtures, inroads, yes.”
“Going back to Ciletij,” said Mel, “If you are a Ciletij who has done nothing more aggressive than buy an ice-cream and you have been treated with hostility, we want to know about it.  However, if you are using your stay in Dabida to slag off Sarat and Maya, expect to get as good as you give.  You will not end up most popular boy in the class.”
“This is a threat to Ciletij jobs?  That’s part of the screaming?”
“There’s nothing they make Kadun doesn’t.  There will of course be formal impact assessments.  Or can’t. You have also to consider trade between Ciletij and Kadun.  As we said, manufacture of consumer goods has been curtailed, allowing Ciletij to fill the gap.  That manufacture will resume.”
 “You will find,” said Hass airily, “the majority of white goods sold in the north of Var-sega’ are imported from Ciletij.  Kadun is entirely capable of making her own fridges.”
 “Someone has bent your ear.”  Hass didn’t say he’d picked that up from Mitch at the forum. “So they do actually talk to each other, Ciletij and Kadun.  And presumably underneath it all Ciletij is not going to sever ties with the whole of the rest of the continent!”
“And of course in Vaudos,” said Mel. “Bad guys trade too.”
Someone looked up from his phone.
`“Just found something – dumbfuck crap alert.  You are warned.  Between Vij and Sarshi and Sarat and Cho, Maya has of course has been totally manipulated.  You have to understand the little girl is a victim.”
“Sounds it, doesn’t she.”
“Typical sexist crap, a woman can’t be an agent in her own right.”
“I am guessing there must have been responses from both Sarat and Maya, but we do not seem – “
“I can think of one, but I think not even Sarat!  It involves two fingers.”
“One response,” said Venga.  “Maya was in Van-senok.  Might she not have flown to Gula-Toon?”
“I do not think she’d risk being shot down!”
“Nonetheless,” said Mel, “Ciletij s going to have to talk to them.”
“Going back to Zani’s heir it’s like – “
“Dynamite! One plus one, right Mel, only we didn’t see it.”
LIVE FROM VAN-SENOK: CANTILIP ZA-FENAN REPLIES TO AZT
And now – oh man, this is AMAZING! Cantilip za-fenan will talk to us about the febrile doctrines of Van-senok from the capital of Van-senok, Vaconik, and here she is outside the Viledeen…Cantilip, in olive fatigues, shimmering dark green hair cascading down her back, secured by a black velvet headband, was armed with a large and heavy bronze bow.
“And you can use it!”
“Oh, I can,” said Cantilip, drawing an arrow and sighting it. 
“If you would like to put that down….”
“Madam Minister,” said Cantilip.
I do not think, murmured Karula, I can equal this one.
“This is the Woman with the Book and this is the Woman with the Bow.  Madam Minister should travel more.  We should be delighted to welcome her to the Viledeen.”  Those who knew ye ancient legend yowled with laughter.  Cantilip retold the story in case there were those who didn’t.  She then gave a succinct description of earthpower, the indigenous culture of Kadun, you of course recall, pointed out that the toads of Gula-Toon bore no relation to the ordinary Ciletij known to senoki, and with the bow slung over her back, went on a tour of Vaconik, oblivious to a bug-eyed Zur and a beaming Airoch.
“Obviously it is wholly inexact to speak of this as a women’s revolution, but just at this moment I have to say I am unsure it is anything else.  What do you say to that?”
“It is a human revolution,” said Airoch.  “Many revolutions of course only engage the 40% of a population who are heterosexual males.”
“About this war….”
“If Azt murdered Ciletiij, we should be forced to act.  Really vastly preferable we act beforehand.”
“I have to say the word that strikes me is ‘mess’.  What are they going to do, shoot FAF down?”
“That of course is for Gula-Toon to decide.”
Back in the Sa-aanda Senta:
“One of the things that’s coming out – I am sure Venga and Sarshi will sigh heavily – we don’t know very much about Kadun.”
Venga smiled
“Azt bad guys, Carlin good guys.  Full stop.”
“You have a succinct way of putting it. Like that map Sarat put up!  Blur with a question-mark.  Man, the Viledeen!  Mel mut have known that stuff, I’m guessing, Cults and rites, but we’re just zapped.”
“There’s just this whole blur and all we really know about it is it’s apparently nuts about Maya!  That is just slightly – I don’t what it is, disorientating.  OF course everyone’s in shock.  Segani are saying nice things about her, Vij!”
“I know,” said Vij, and didn’t hide the smirk.
“Not planning to move I hope!  You are – can’t believe I’m saying this.  The empress’ brother.  And of course her cousins!  You can see why – well you can!  Not going to be neutral, are you!”
“Eventally the border will open, so there’ll be more irturbi. 
Mel said: “The amount of work that needs doing in Kadun, Sarat probably has a labour shortage if anything.  Even with automation.  Guys aren’t going to come here looking for work.  Even if they dd we haven’t got any.  That’s at the level of unskilled, semi-skilled labour of course.  Anyone with a particular talent is welcome.  I don’t think Sarat would like us poaching his talent, but we can try.”
“I heard that, just what is all the work that needs doing.”
“Stuff we take for granted,” said Hass.  “Not everywhere in Kadun of course, but pot-holes in the road, street-lighting, some parts of Kadun have been very badly neglected.”
“Sarat has one huge advantage,” said Venga.  “Many men who would otherwise have been unskilled or barely are in uniform and in the military they have become tech-fiends!  The Kadun military is like Sarat very very techy.”
“Their eyes met across a crowded room!  All the same it’s pretty mind-blowing.  Didn’t I just see Sarat here holding forth about the ozone layer!”
“Kadun has one of those,” said Hass, “and some of its factories are definitely not NoZone approved.  He’s pretty good on waterborne parasites and industrially induced respiratory disease too.”
“I can see in some crazy sense it’s a continuous progression.  You want something done, you do it yourself!”
“Obviously you knew this was coming.  Do you not find it just a little startling to be the emperor’s brother-in-law?”
“Not really,” said Vij.  “What difference does it make to anything?”
Certain amount of choking.
“That I guess is the question!”
 “It’s not us that’s changed, it’s how we see everyone else.”
“The Dabidan model, right, Mel, and here you all are sprawled in the sunshine.  How can it possibly happen in Azt?”
“Climate is a bit depressing,” said Hass.
“Perhaps it just did,” said Mel.
 “There is a delightful café in the Colonnade,” said Venga.  “Or was before things infested.  Undoubtedly in the summer they have tables on the pavement.”
“You grew up in Azt.”
“I did.”
“This is conceivable to you?”
Venga smiled.
“As conceivable as what we have seen today.”
“I did too,” said Sarshi.  “When I was 16, Azt was amazing.  Somewhat went downhill after that.”
“Not our sort of people,” said Venga shaking his head sadly.
“I have actually been!  When much younger.  Culture vulture.  Pretty fabulous.” A thought struck him but he didn’t voice it in case Azt hadn’t thought of it. “Of course you’re not moving anywhere!  But you could! Symbolic of the momentous events of the day.  You’ll visit.  As family or as GASH?”
 “What’s happened to the Quadrant.  Zani.  Somehow it’s all part of the same story. We all  know our history.”
“Compartmentalization,” said Mel, “is a long and useful word.”
“Exactly.  You’d say the divisions between the compartments have been smashed?”
“Gays in Kadun, Hass. The gaps are going to show, right.”
“The reputation of the Kadun military is pure evil.”
“But Sarat’s talked to them, right?”
“There’s still no way they can share his views.”
“You talk of hundreds of thousands of men,” said Venga.  “Any gay in Kadun knows it takes only a handful to make life hell.”
“So Sarat’s saying zero tolerance – “
“PANTHER and Sardun have always said that,” said Sarshi. 
“Even the most prejudiced,” said Venga, “when a gay cat is saving your life – it has been well said, after that no-one care if he fornicate with hamsters – except possibly Sarat.”
Surrounding Zuri creased.
“Defo zero tolerance for that one!”
“So a lot of guys who’ve maybe never actually met gay men.”
“It’s the same with everything.  I mean we all know Kadun’s at war, but we haven’t looked under the surface of the war.”
“Then one day we wake up and find a tree-hugging biologist is Anile Emperor!  You can see that’s a bit hornswoggling.”
“But again you can see – I mean this wasn’t a meek quiet demure tree-hugger!”
“Focus.  I’m sure that’s terribly important!  Kind of what was in the background and we didn’t really notice.  Sure he’s Narulis’ heir…
 What is the Master of Kadun doing throughout this merry prattle?  Chatting away, waiting for news of Smudge.  Other reaction in Kadun had been immediate and terse
Varna: “Ludicrous little man.”
Maya: Varchulan darling, we do not have time for it. Should you have anything intelligent to say, do say it.
Of course not everyone regarded it as merry prattle.  Bris, attendant upon the deliberations of the Ciletij Cabinet, regarded the response as existential horror.
The merry prattle took a sudden downturn.
“It’s a dream, though, isn’t it.  Sarat and Maya just can’t do it, sit like this in Azt.  I mean honestly, I’m sorry, but how long would they live?”
“The word from Carlin is PANTHER security is awesome, petrifying!  You can’t scan the whole of Azt.”
“Nothing is going to stop them going where they want to go, bars, factories, slums.”
“Mel…”  Lot of shaking of heads.
“I mean that’s very brave and noble…”
“Sarat,” said Mel, “hasn’t done this to rapidly end up dead.”
“Of course it has been considered,” said Hass.  He smiled.  “Controlled mooching.”
“There’s sure nothing we can do about it…”
“We’re not – it’s all part of the same.  It’s an enormous horrendous difference.  Public figures in Dabida do not get assassinated!”
“But I mean you must have faced it, Pietri, Cho.”
“No,” said Mel, “never gave it a moment’s.”
“Sorry…”
“IS this talk about something else time?”
Narulis’ gig.  Damn’ masterclass.  They’re just damn’ sitting there.
“I think we all know,” remarked Mitch, “Kadun is getting something from this besides an economic forecast.”
The cartoonist at Purple Prose, Zur’s gay paper definitely got something further from it: Varchulan as a snorting bull, tail raised having emitted a steaming heap.  At the other end the ring through his nose was attached to a chain attached in turn to a grinning skeleton labelled HOMOPHOBIA – SEXISM – TORTURE – MURDER – CORRUPTION.  To his amazement it instantly went viral.
You cannot say, said observers in G-T, that Ciletij has gone more ape than it already was.
            You wouldn’t like to retract would you Vij.  Before they decare war on Dabida!
            Aw, Sarat would never let them through.
            Varchulan on the phone to Vanya: “What the hell is going on!”
            The annual stupidity award, thought Vanya.
            “Maya is someone who is very lovable.  Mel loves her, Zur loves her and right now the entire imperial military love her.  To attack both Maya and A-M was not clever.”
            “I was told – “ Vanya sighed internally.  “The boy is a feint.”
            “A what?”
            “Alzani-Meta is behind this, of course.”
            “Join the real world, Varchulan.  Fast. PANTHER is behind this.”
            “A few seedy toms.”
`           “Even you do not believe that.”
            “Sohenoil.  It is a nonsense!  The Kadun military back a child?”
            “He is not a child.”
            “There are demonstrations.”
            “I know,” said Vanya.  The worm turns?
            “I can do nothing,” Varchulan sounded happier.
            Vanya laughed.
            “You did it very well.”
            “Dynamic young revolutionary.”
            “Glad you listen closely.”
            “Bloody Tonsa.”
            “Very closely,” cooed Vanya.
            “They turn the world on its head.”
            “They are the worst thing to hit the Cult since Zani.”
            “They cannot govern Kadun.  It is surreal.”
            “Possibly the second bit,” said Vanya.
            Back in Carlin, B+P continued the sad task of driving nails into the government in G-T.
“First,” said Baz, “so we don’t all go nuts.  Nomenclature.  Isn’t that a good word. What was KAF, Kadun Air Fleet, is now I-A-F, Imperial Air Fleet, which has many glorious features but not tripping off the tongue.  C-A-F, also pronounced KAF, a hard C, like caff as in short for cafeteria, stands for Ciletij Air Fleet. Which comes in two flavours, sweet and sour. So K-K-CAF now always means Ciletij fliers.  Have we all got that?”
            “Vastly prefer it,” murmured Varna.
            “Now, if you’re asking who’s playing real kiddies’ games, it’s G-T, and the game is shut your eyes really tight and let’s pretend.  Let’s pretend we’re all one big happy family and all the little Ciletij bunnies love each other and they’re all pink and fluffy and all they want is to share their carrots.” They are of course Fidubi, thought anyone who knew.  Not that it shows or anything.   Vanya emitted what might have been a low moan.  “Who wanted FAF out?  The hebade Cult is who.  FAF’s job was to defend Ciletij, right, the whole of the east, north of Azt.  And oh goodness me who would attack her, Cult, Cult, Cult, all along the southern border.   Load of vamps take off from Vaudos, the C for Cools have bigger problems than the east, they have got to seal the west, protect G-T, though right at this minute I’m not sure I can see why.”
“And of course all this is Fidub’s fault for upholding the civilized world.”
“if it’s not Fidub’s fault, it’s Sarat’s fault for being Anile Emperor.  On no account whatever is it the fault of the dick-heads in G-T.”
“This is not funny!” exclaimed someone.  Some members of the Fidubi Senate disagreed, though others murmured about the language of diplomacy.
“Control those bloody cats!” expostulated a Ciletij minister, perhaps fortunately ignorant they were Fidubi cats.
“What do we look like!”
“Lot of stuff coming in from G-T.  Kids out on the streets.”
Less than 24 hours, thought Vanya.  What do you do for an encore, Sarat?
LIVE FROM VAR-SEGA’: KARULA BAN-SARNDIT-VAQ REPLIES TO AZT
“Now, ladies and gentlemen, if I may sharpen my claws.  If we address the extraordinary mouthings of Azt, the centre of which attack appears not to be Sarat and Maya but me.
Undoubtedly there are many layers to gross and obscene assault on children and other non-combatants, not least a person of the feminine gender at the time about as far from her other half as it was possible to be.  What we have been treated to is an appeal to the Houses, who yesterday were reviled in the grossest terms as the enemy to put supposed self-interest before country.  Our position is clear-cut.  Power is accountable and its actions must be transparent.  Capital is a form of power and its actions must be accountable and transparent.  No deals in corners.  No pay-offs.  No word in your ear, old boy.  Any deal, any payment can and will and must appear on the front-pages of every newspaper in the world.  You will note if you read the financial pages that far from falling through the floor the shares of reputable decent companies have rocketed.  All reputable decent firms in Kadun know this is how the south runs industry and the industries of the south by no means trail handicapped thereby.  On the other hand of course if you make your living through exploitation, suffering, injury, sickness, you have a very big problem.
I am not going to descend to the intellectual merits of joinery versus home economics. 
“And a person of the feminine gender has just given us our first treatise on economics!  Lot of things there.  Lead by example.”
“As Sarat has said, we want people talking to each other. We want women talking, full stop.  In some circles, as we all know, that is also a major question of men listening.  To those gentlemen I say, you do not do yourselves any favours if you switch off at the sound of a female voice.”
“No-one but a complete moron would have failed to listen to Maya.”
“Morons may be non grata but I should be hesitatnt to say Kadun is a moron free zone!  I have sure had run-ins with the unreconstructed Kadun male, attenuated only by my being my lady Var-sega’.  They will not be grossly offensive to my face they will not be grossly offensive to Maya’s face.  They are grossly offensive to many intelligent and competent women who do not happen to be Her Imperial Majesty!  That said, I would point out for the benefit of the wider world what we in Kadun know already, that with the men in uniform Kadun is being run by women and a great deal has changed since I was doing coursework.
 
 “I think we have a divergence,” said Sarat.  “Some people want to talk about Ciletij.  I don’t.”
“It’s all the same story!” protested someone.
“Not to Kadun,” said Sarat. 
“You have possibly brought down their government!”
“Your entire war is dependent on Ciletij!”
“Scenarios,” said Sarat.  “Numerous.  Whatever happens, we win.  Ciletij can make it harder, more likely guys end up dead.  A bunch of mad bears invades Kadun screaming they defend a free and democratic Ciletij against the evil empire. Followed by good bears trying to round them up.  WCS doubled.  Vaudos is going to be complex anyway.  Guys surrendering.  Guys pretending to surrender.  Guys fighting to the last man. It needs a side-show like it needs a hole in the head.  Just keep out!  Just keep them out is all I want from Ciletij.Attempted Cult takeover of Ciletij is next week’s problem.  As Maya has said stupidity means our hands are in any case tied.  The Quadrant may be on the rocks but ties are deep and numerous.  What I am about to say is ot an official statemebt on behalf of anyone except me.  I don’t find it likely a tiff would be regarded as a permanent rift.”
Numerous noises of assent.
“Can I just say you can always find plenty of Ciletij in Zur.”
“And in M-P. I mean it’s not like a couple breaking up! Tourists, businesspeople, students.”
“To look at the broader picture, I think a lot of us have thought things fairly fixed and we’re now looking at a really fluid situation.”
 
“So far,” allowed Cho, “we appear to be doing rather well.”
Essa shook his head in disbelief, like a lot of people.  Obviously we did not expect this to fail.
 
Back in the Sa’aanda Senta, a Ciletij couple held the floor.
“We’re just tourists, but we come every summer.  I don’t want to make excuses – Ciletij don’t understand, they’ve never been south, probably seems to you like we’re always coming and going.  All of it – Alzani-Meta – I think I understand what Sarat wants to do in Kadun.  I think it’s completely nuts but – like they said, how long’s he going to live.  Zur lives on the streets.  We don’t. It’s a totally different culture.”
The man grinned.
“Think I talked to him once, Sarat.   NoZone meeting we went to.  We’re not all tree-killers, you know.  It’s a long way and what with the war in the way, lot of people take their holidays at home.”
“I think a lot of people would want me to ask – has anyone been unpleasant to you?”
“Oh no,” said the woman.  “Well, they know us, don’t they.  We come every year.  We stay at the Cliff View in Osil.  They’re really friendly there.”
Osil is a suburb of Zur.
“Sounds like a lovely piece of normal!”
It is a measure of the state the Ciletij Cabinet had got itself into that the Minister of Health’s reaction to this was, “It gets worse!”
“Perfectly normal citizens, probably a bit better off than some.”
No-one remarked particularly that Mel and family slipped away back to the hill.

....
 Now Asdinan has things to say.
“We call them the Seetles, a funny word, you may say, even  a childish one.  It means C-T-T-L: Change The Third Letter.
 
We consider the third letter already changed with regard to Gula-Toon, their friends the torturers and mutilators of women, not een their friends but their masters, thosw to whom they crawl.  Accountability, transparency, big words readily thrown around, but what do they mean.  I have of course talked to Smudge.  He says they mean that prick, by which he means Varchulan darling, explain to him in person why Corsin are morally superior to Sarat.  I think the whole ontinient would like to hear that one.   I’d be happy to set it up in the Rabbiters’.  But of course he is a coward and hides from us. He has nothing civilized to say, nothing that does not turn the stomachs of all decent people, nothing indeed that does not disgrace Ciletij.  You despicable little man.
Oh Asdinan, said Vanya.
 
“I of course second that,” said Sarat.
“We all do,” said Varna.
 
“Haven’t finished,” said As.  “AT least he is human.  Standing here, pillorying the government of Ciletij.  Isn’t that off-centre?    He is human and so his currency is words.  Kadun has learned there is no point in wasting words on Azt.  We call them rats, we call them bacilli.  We call them things because some way along the line they have done something to themselves which is a rejection of being human.  They are simply not nice to know and so our fury descends on Gula-Toon but it is not aimed at the millions of fellow-humans in Ciletij who like us in Kadun just want to get on with their lives without malign idiots in the way.
 
“Also seconded,” said Sarat.
“Indeed,” said Varna.
 
In the Sa’aanda Senta a Ciletij girl is screaming, “We are not all bloody psychopaths and nutters!”
And in the Times office a vast glimpse of the obvious.  “I guess Carlin isn’t free because the House accommodates, prevaricates, right?”
“Well done!” said Num viciously.
 
Meanwhile Maya has arrived at Siba Base and we are getting a rare opportunity to see our gallant fliers and I think it is very clear from the demeanour of our young men that there is nothing they like more than talking to  dark pretty empresses! Who tell Azt they are gallow-bait, losers, history, a joke.  I think those too are important qualities!  For assuredly that has long been their message to the world and just perhaps the world did not entirely listen.
Beyond existential horror, decided Bris, hugely amused.
 
And at the hill we have – Sarshi, just Sarshi
 
Do I feel like laughing?  I do not.  Love and laughtet do not resolve this matter of Kadun.   But they help.  Things will never stop us loving and laughing and when we do not feel like laughing we can still love.  As, my darling, love, love, love.  All our love to Carlin, love to Midi, FItia and Smudge, Love to everyone injured or bereaved in Vaudos.  The five of us are all quite rational, so we’re not absolutely sure it will do any good, but it can’t possibly do any harm and we are agreed that it’s a lovely idea if the whole of Zur sends our love to anyone suffering in Kadun, so  dear Zuri if just before you go to bed, you send out those waves of love, that too is oir answer, our no that doesn’t know how to be yes, our absolute rejection of the CTTLs. 
 
Oh Sarshi, said Vanya.
 
“Love to Kadun!” resounded from the Sa’aanda Senta.
 
And now here is Mel – that’s Mel?  Dabidan joke there dear world, our beloved Mel rarely looks this tidy just do not tell us Tar is going to abdicate after all! But now I am hearing he has a message directly from Tar.
 
Just a short statement, said Mel.  I have talked to Tar.  He seconds what As has said.  He also expresses a strong desire to visit the Viledeen.  He has been in touch with Marula and will stay a couple of days in Van-senok. From there, if he is not non grata, he thought of arranging a visit to Ciletij. Really, he thinks they should be given the chance to abuse su to our faces.  He observed Vij#s ploy was cnnuing but possibly not successful – to make Ciletij so furious with us they forgot about Sarat. Vij sighed and said he’s not that clever. Equally of course it is important to keep the roads open for those who do wish to associate with us. 
 
We have to interrupt Mel there becahse tge kids ar out of the streets un GPT, they’ve got poster and banners that cartoon and in Viniti Square they’ve made a huge circle and they’re shouting Love to Kadun!  This is – I don’t know what his is revolution.
 
Lwaa than 24 hours, said Vanya, Sarat, what do you do for an encore?
 
Others continued to monitor the Cult Press and if cold hard persons of steel merely winced.  The less inured simply threw up.  War by cartoon too has consequences.
 
So the next on-line edition of the Azt Star was naturally gross? Well, no, actually, more  remarkably, startlingly,  obscene, even for that collection of used toilet-paper soaked in infected vomit.  Maya in leotard split open at the crotch, the top of her thighs bare and bloodied, legs splayed, face contorted into porn star fake orgasm, caption ‘Come and get it!’
 
Baz of course got the short straw.  Sarat was chatting away.
“Sorry to interrupt.  There’s something Sarat needs – “ Wrong word but there isn’t a bloody right one.  “ – to see.  Can we just step aside a minute.”
Sarat was surprised but stepped.
“You really really aren’t going to like this.  Deep breaths.”  After a moment he said, “You’ve never really wanted to strangle before, have you.”
Sarat rang Maya then returned to the chattering throng and called for silence.
“The Azt Star has responded with a piece of pornography I shall not project.  Who the hell do they think they impress?”
Maya among Carlutan’s adoring young men, both acutely embarrassed and totally livid, said calmly, “Take it you have tailors, guys who can sew a seam.”
Run that up for you in two ticks, Miss Maya.
“I have been in Carlin 24 hours,” said Sarat, “and I haven’t yet been to the Rabbiters’.  I don’t think they can stop us laughing.”
All catapulted to their feet.
            Sarat waved his hand.
            “It’s cool, guys. How are we doing?”
            “Toast to His Imperial Majesty!” said Vishtu.
            Sarat realized this had as much to do with Smudge as with empire.
            “It was PANTHER.  They moved like greased cats!”
            They toasted him anyway.
            Baz periodically checked his phone until he said, “Big fat grin.”  He passed the phone over.
            “Maya has responded to Azt,” said Sarat.  “Can we project – wall will do.”
            People hastily shifted themselves to clear the way.
The cammo leotard didn’t fit terribly well but it didn’t have to, fur gilet atop and combat boots at the bottom. Maya sat on a tank slightly forward of a great many other thanks.  She also wore an Army cap and cradled a machine-pistol.  Around her were an Imperial Guard of Rewn’s guys.  Legend: How to talk to men who hate women.
WHistiling didn’t seem appropriate and nor did any formal response so the gathering in the Rabbiters’ burst out clapping.
Baz got a further text.  He showed it to Sarat.
Sarat smiled almost shyly and stood up.
“Duty calls.  Please do come and watch if you like.  A small ceremony.”
“Not telling,” said Baz, “but I think you’ll like it.”
“We are agog!”
A convoy of trucks, cars and bicycles meandered back to the House.  Yea, from afar was it perceived the House was floodlight.  From closer to was it perceived the drive was lined with military rigidly at attention.  What the - ?!
Sarat had grinned to himself: There can’t be any protocol of which I am dismally ignorant for this one.   I think it should be on behalf of, symbolic.
Baz got out first and had a word with the military.
Sarat got out and began to walk up the drive.  Half a dozen men tailed off and fell in behind him.
Follow, Baz judged, at a distance.  The throng obeyed.
The military band at the front of the House began to play the imperial anthem.
People said after the whole of Kadun got to its feet, an obvious exaggeration, of course, but concealing a deeper truth (wrote some newshound or other).  Thought you were a republican.  It’s not about that, it’s about Kadun.  About a mad kid with a supreme talent for telling Azt to go fuck themselves. Nonetheless and heretofore in bars and offices, barracks and factroies, streets and squares the omnipresent camera saw Kadun stop and stand.
You want Kadun’s answer? asked Airoch.  That is Kadun’s answer.
At the end of the drive was a small table covered by a black velvet cloth.  On it lay Narulis’ sword.  Behind it stood Saryulin.
“Imperial Majesty!”
“My lord of Carlin,” replied Sarat.
“My lords, my ladies, ladies and gentlemen, I present to Sarat-ban-essa-eban-Narulis, Anile Emperor, Master of Kadun, Narulis’ sword. It is our honour to serve Narulis’ heir.”
Saryulin picked up the sword by its heft and held it high, then placed it across his outstretched palms.
Sarat carefully took it.  Whether a chorus of dancing bears high-kicked across the floor of the Ciletij Senate is not recorded – I think we should be told – and nor did the sword appear to possess any alarming properties such as those associated with the throne, but Sarat said after he felt something, call it history.
He turned and laughed.
“And now, Madam Minister?”
Then he said rather quiet unSaratish things about the honour being his, unlooked-for and truly not yet deserved, things that were totally Saratish about accepting the sword on behalf of Kadun’s fighting men, and things that were also Saratish but from deep within him, things he had not thought to say in public, or at any rate not today, about the weight of history and the responsibility of representing Va, and some fiend played with the lighting and the startlingly good-looking young emperor stood silhouetted against the House, sword in hand and he is bloody Narulis.
Amida held Cho’s hand very tightly and with her other hand wiped away his tear.  She kissed his cheek. 
Sarat laughed again and made a couple of experimental swipes with the sword.
“Yes, I can see why guys liked them. If ever there was a reminder there is work to be done.”  He grinned.  “If I had a home I could hang it on the wall, but I don’t right now have a permanent residence.  The Jumesit will do fine.  I think it should hang in the camp, on the wall of the canteen.”   He laughed again and gave another swipe.  “It feels part of me, but I suspect wearing one has to be learned.”  He turned to the soldiers.  “Could you do that please, have it hung on the wall.”
On this auspicious occasion…What he wanted to say, what he had to say, welled up inside him and just this once he was a tiny bit anxious about getting it right.  Really not so good at the eso stuff,  can we talk about the drains.
“My lords, my ladies, ladies and gentlemen, once again I thank you. I think now we should party.  Is that appropriate?  Some might ask it.  I’m asking it.  On a day that has seen great horror and misery.  Yes, because that is the message of Va.  Maya said it.  They came the skull-faces, but we laughed.  Va is the music they cannot silence, the dance they cannot terminate, the laughter they cannot make haunted and afraid, the triumph of life over death, the light without shadow. That is the point, that was Narulis’ point.  Or there is no point  There is no dark. You can say it’s crazy.  You can say how very evidently real is evil.  I’m a scientist, a biologist.  I’m the first to tell you blood is real, pain is real, death is real.  But somewhere it’s still the point.  We can still live unshadowed.”  Baz cooed internally, it’s all right, you’re doing fine, everyone understands. Well, as much as anyone ever does.   Sarat would have felt well rewarded by just one irturbi saying, know what you’re trying to say, lad. Not sure if I believe it meself, but I know what you’re saying. Of course, you’re a scientist, you’re not going to be silly about this stuff. He wasn’t.  He found his thread.  “Of course we as humans can’t do anything about mortality, accident, but the shadows of hunger, of torture, of endemic disease, these can be, must be, will be destroyed.  Living in fear can be eradicated.  People age and eventually die.  That is natural.  Dying at 40 of a radily treatable disease is not natural.  It is the result of human evil.  That evil is contempt, contempt for the being of others.  And so – “ He grinned.  “ – that impeccably practical and scientific sense I’m saying this empire stands for a Kadun where there is no dark.”
Sarat still wasn’t quite sure how to terminate this oration, so yeah, let’s all go and have a drink didn’t seem quite  the right note.    He walked over to the bandmaster.  Not exactly a band-piece.  If they couldn’t do it, he’d have to find it on his phone. 
Ah, said the more reflective reaches of Kadun.  Not just a pretty face.  So that’s the point.
“Now he is Anile Emperor,” said Cho.
Baya gave a naughty laugh, knowing how deeply Sarat preferred not to talk about that kind of stuff.
“This,” said Sarat. 
The notes of a lone trumpet soared into the night, followed rapidly by drums saying leap! Dance! Vault the heavens! Girdle the earth! The flutes joined in, the delighted gurgling of a thousand streams. 
And far away in the hospital at Car-sandis, Smudge by the bedside of the unconscious Midi took out his headphones and adjusted the volume and let the music dance over her.  “There is no dark,” he said softly, “stupid, ridiculous and true. Or there is no point.”  Then he knew he had to draw the music.  On a phone?  Later, but draw it he would.
And far, far far away in a bar in Girag Mitch bubbled over and grabbed Karula by the waist and began the wild dance, which is probably what Sarat would have done if Maya had been with him. In Zur Vij was a tad more decorous about it, taking Sarshi’s hand and leading her ceremoniously into the middle of the Sa’aanda Senta.  The wild dance, you will have gathered, is performed with one’s partner.  It’s not exactly, people try to explain rather feebly, that it’s erotic, it’s that it’s alive.  It’s generally described as naked life, the act of generation, someone once remarked drily, without physical contact.  Life that will not be gainsaid. Someone once described it as like a tree pushing up through the ground, from seedling to mighty lord of the forest in ten minutes flat.  Nothing is less like a tree than a couple twirling and spinning but everyone knew what he meant.  Someone else said it’s like an electric shock.  Divaldin looked at his young men and thought, the night is ended, Kadun is alive.  Stupid, ridiculous and mad.  Or perhaps not.  We have more urgent questions than metaphysics.  Or perhaps not. 
“I understand everything,” pronounced Ritawa.  Not surprisingly, the others choked.
“We all know you’re gifted.”
“Earthpower is latent.  Of course it’s earthpower, but it’s blatant.”
Munzi grinned.
“Insolent.  I sort of know what you mean.”
“The next bit,” said Ritawa.  “Break-out!”
“I really don’t know very much,” said Inyulat, “but I’m not sure Sardun would agree.  They’re pretty blatant.”
“But that’s here in the west,” said Ritawa.  “This is what Narulis brought to Carlin, this is why.”
It just sort of gets you, said those with fewer words.
Sarat walked over to the guys on parade, thanked them and asked them if they’d like to join him in the Rabbiters’
Baz, who of course thinks of everything, quietly had Narulis’ sword returned to the House for safe-keeping over what looked like being a long night.
Midnight  came and went.    Sarat thought it was time quiet came to the village and retreated to the canteen at the camp with those around him.  No sword.  Baz explained. The guys grinned and some of them formed themselves into a sword party which would go to the House in the morning to retrieve the relic.
So this is home, is it.  It’s a lovely little hut, purred Paw, better than the Falsit by a long chalk.  Ah me, the luxuries of rank.  Sarat saw that his clothes had been unpacked and neatly hung or otherwise stored  and made a note to thank someone (they included by the way the lemon flip-flops, which now assumed the role at very least of slippers; if the weather stayed mild he would – and did – wear them outside; besides clothes, razor, comb, toothbrush he had brought almost nothing. He saw appreciatively he had been provided with things like scissors, a scribble-pad, a selection of pens.   His sparse collection  of artefacts had been carefully laid out on the table.  Mirror shades (he thought people should always be able to see his eyes, 98% of the time, unless he felt very difficult indeed), a tiny model aircraft of dated model that amused him as a sort of totem, since Airoch had given it to him when he was seven; there was a small silver tray given him by Cho of the kind you might put on your hall table and dump your keys on when you came in, but wallet, keys, cards, all that belonged in another life; the only thing that had wowed the unpackers was an a small and exquisite silver panther, muscles rippling, clearly prowling, also from Cho.  The imperial laptop, the pulsating hub of the empire had been taken to another part of the NO GO complex, that labelled Ops, where he had his very own office.  Most of it was in any case in the cloud known as cat heaven.  Baz sat on the bed.
“You went and did and done it.”
“Quite a day,” said Sarat.
“Kadun is at your feet, you do know that.”
“Bit of an exaggeration,” said Sarat, snorting at a mail from Hass beginning ‘Dear Narulis…’  “Ring Maya.”
“And how has your day been?  Anything interesting happen?”
They evaporated off.
Others continued to toil into the night, even if it was a labour of love.  We too have a sense of humour and know how to use it.
“There!  First thing the Press blokes will see in the morning.”
“Of course we’ll take it down if Sarat doesn’t like it.”
At breakfast it was remarked that a mural had appeared.
Up to the  boss.
Map of Kadun.  Large panther lying across Carlin.  Slightly smaller and fluffier one lying across Var-sega’.
Two panthers, one slightly smaller and fluffier than the other, were lying neath the hady boughs of a silver birch
Sarat had the mornings figured thus.  If anything of import had happened in the night, he’d have been woken up and told about it and  he’d talk to the guys about it over breakfast at 6.00, providing they weren’t already launching an attack by then.  Otherwise he’d leave them to have their breakfast without him, get up, have coffee, read his email, find out if anything at all had happened in the night, and go for breakfast at about 8.00.  He thought he was prepared for anything from deliberate abuse to excruciating shyness.  Cats indeed had antennae well extended for guys who hovered, who looked as if they’d like to say something but couldn’t quite pluck  up the courage to for instance say they were gay.   He wasn’t quite prepared for love.  Guys grinned at him as he passed, as though he were a good friend.  Some swept him casual salutes.  Waves of warmeth and enthusiasm wafted around him.  Was it something I said?
Having caused the Ciletij worm to turn, maybe?
A great deal had happened during the night.  He had grinned hugely and detached his attention.  Any comment on Ciletij, Sarat?  Hardly for  me to say anything.
Va, said Baz.  Because you’re the adorable you who believes in biology not baloney.  You made it concrete.
Wake up and find it was all a dream, thought Seani.  Today we shall lead with the hockey scores. That lasted five minutes.
And this is the morning after the night before in the centre of G-T.  Pro-democracy demonstrators camped out and the police made no attempt to move them;  Obviously they posed the government which has so recently spoken of the supremacy of elected authority something of a problem.  Nonetheless we have been told there were a number of arrests, at least putatively involving an attempt to force their way into the Senate buildings, and there sure are signs of disarray there, broken bottles, placards and of course the usual litter and naturally other citizens are not wholly impressed and the chief demand is apparently that bloody kids clear up their mess.When the dust has settled most Ciletij are normal citizens of a democratic country and accept the right to demonstrate, though whether this dust is settling any time soon.  There are also reports of ‘scuffles’, between whom is unclear, but what is clear is that last night of all nights no-one in G-T wanted to come out publicly in support of the Cult, there was no counter-demonstration.  As has been said, this situation has been bubbling for some time and I think there is general recognition that this is rather more than a few kids yelling.  Influential voices have been heard, among them the leader of Progression, the chief party of opposition. 
“Ciletij is at a cross-roads.  We have of course been taken by surprise, like the rest of the world, but that cannot be an excuse.  The reaction of a surprised south was immediate and unfeigned.  There can be no-one who does not understand the word ‘empire’ has an unfortunate resonance with us but clearly anyone who sees Sarat as a threat to Ciletij is on the far side of deranged.
Today was the day we woke up to how far the balance has been tipped in the wrong direction.  Whether or not you like Kadun, whether or not you like Sarat-ban-essa are peripheral compared to the possibility of war being drummed up by a sophisticated propaganda machine attempting to convince us we defend Ciletij by fighting for Azt.  invasion by Azt if we do not dance to their tune?  Many serious questions need be asked.
“We are a quiet people, a peaceful people.  We don’t want to fight anybody. Unless of course we have to.”
Oh now this is joyous, it appears the demonstrators were summarily hauled before a judge and sentenced to oh real hard labour.  Litter patrol.  Under police escort they will clean up every trace of their activities.  If not a country house in Carlin!  Attempting to force access to a secure premise is of course a serious offence in Ciletij as it is everywhere but the Ciletij Government has a somewhat broader notion of what areas are off-limits than do we in Zur and it would appear the judiciary is in line rather with us.  Clearly the fault lines are gaping here. I would think there is also recognition that these were very much the pacifist treehugger elements of society!  You do not have to look far among their posters and banners to find not only No To War, Gay rights for Kadun and Nuts to Azt! But Hug a Tree!  There is also a very telling banner Take Your Heads out of the Sand!  I think it would be correct to say that these were pretty normal kids, as youwould find in any college city who thought they were safe in a free country and it’s kind of as though a alarm bell rang, clear and present danger!  But the key-word is kids and the key posters may indeed be No to Ageism!  It’s Our Future!  As in any capital the brightest and most go-ahead tend to congregate and in the last 24 hours we have sure heard a very great deal from a number of people under 30.
But going back to the scenes in the courthouse, it appears the kids forced their way into a forecourt and claimed they were going to occupy it, but made no ateempt to force, emphasis on force their way further,  knocked on a few closed doors, shouted Is anybody alive here,  Hallo, is there life? Is there anyone at home?  Civil disorder it may be, but I confesss my funny bone is touched.  These were clearly a good-atured threat to society!  Of course in Zur someone would have come out to speak to them.  I think it is interesting that no-one did This has of course been attributed to cowardice, to arrogant, but I think a more generous view is possibly that the authorities had nothing to say! Are they now to do a complete about-turn and declare the continent’s future lies with the young?
Naturally there are voices raised also against the ‘proposterous leniency’ of the sentencing, disruption to the democratic process is a very grave offence.  At the deep end, where the sharks are, we have pure Cult ravings about ‘poofters’ without the balls to defend their country, and other ravings about the demos being orchestrated – by Sarat, I think not!  
It seems there is some  commotion on the far side of the square..  Kids have emerged from tents a bit dishevelled of course and not altogether clean but quite cheerful and making it plain they’re not intended to go away but that is not the cause of commotion but a group of young women who haven’t emerged from any tent or if they have have sure been home first for a quick wash and brush-up! They say they are spokespersons for ‘the movement’ and naturally a lot of people are asking exactly what is the ‘the movement’, what does it represent, but that is not the cause of – noise.  The Leotard Look, dear Dabida, has hit G-T.  Do not think Ciletij women incapable of innovation!  Of course Ciletij is at the head of the game in lightweight thermal fabrics and leotards have been accessorized to franjly stunning effect with wolf-fur – faux, I trust! – freely available throughout G-T and I’d guess the whole of Ciletij, round hats, elbow-length gloves, gilets, knee-high boots.  They are calling themselves The Wolf Pack, which is not exactly a conciliatory and pacifist name.  But even that is not the core of it.  We have here another young person with a highly political grandparent!  Gulan is Varchulan’s  grand-daughter, and precisely what that means, whether communication is ameliorated or whether this is a family at war!  Or of course whether it is a signal from Varchulan that he is on the side of the good guys, despite appearances.  He has not previously had a reputation as, he was not elected for being, a sexist homophobic pig! 
            And from one of the other women we have what to my mind is the soundbite from hell (my emphasis):
            “We don’t stand for anything original or novel or weird.  We stand for freedom, for democracy, transparency, oversight, human rights, peace, how boring is that.  So we thought we’d make ourselves at least look a bit interesting.  We stand for what Ciletij has stood for, for what what at least used to be the Quadrant stands for, long serious legal documents like the statutes of the Quadrant.”
            Right, ladies,  so no original thinking…A lot of people are asking ourselves how in the world has Ciletij got herself into this mess? I have to say that I am thinking there are no fools there.  If you want your kids’ uprising to appeal to staider older people.
“When did you last speak to your grandfather?  He is known as a wily fox and some people are even suggesting he has put you up to this!”
            “Defo no.  Driven me to it, more like.  But I talked to him last night.  Rang him up and asked him if he’d gone mad,”
            “Invaluable hotline,” grinned one of the others.  “What the whole of Ciletij wanted to do!”
            “Whole of Ciletij, we wouldn’t be in this mess.  He thought he could throw them a few rich kids.  No harm done, can’t make the Cult hate them more than it does already.  It just totally backfired.”
            “Others have called for his resignation.  ‘Disgrace to Ciletij’ is not the leader they look for.  Is that what you want?”
            “Not really.  Kick up the is more like it.  Make the idiots see.”
            “So this is just a protest vote?”
            “Try to explain.  If there was an election, it’d be on No to Azt and that’s not an issue, that’s not a question.  Anyone who thinks Grandad or anyone in his government, in his party is going to go to the polls on YES TO AZT is completely out of it.  No to Azt is just basic across the board.   That was politics not policy. He said he was trying to keep the country together.”
            “Something else.  A whole lot of stuff has been said about our trade, Ths isn’t about anything that is determined internally, taxes, new housing or anything.  This is about our relations with the whole of the rest of the continent and there’s just so much information flooding in, I think people need time to assimilate it all and of course it needs to settle.  Trade with Dabida!  What is this if anything was fixed.   There’s just so much stuff going on people hadn’t really realized was going on.”
            “It’s about belonging,” said  “and what does that moron, that complete imbecile do, but isolate us.  I  did an elective in Var-sega’. We’re really very like each other. It’s just complete garbage we sit here hating each other.”
            “In what way?”
“I think a lot of irturbi are more conservative in a good way than say Zur, but so is Ciletij.  Just because we don’t dance naked in the streets, doesn’t mean we’re all sexist fiends.”
            “We do not do that! Much….”
            “So that’s exaggerated too!”
            “That would not appear to mean southern fashions pass you by.”
            “That’s different.  Political.  I have never in my life seen anything as repulsive.”
            “I think all sane people would agree with you there.”
            “Just because we don’t it doesn’t mean we’re sexually sick nutters who won’t!”
            “Exactly how would you define ‘more conservative in a good way’?”
            “Not noisy.  It’s earthpower.  Why they got stung by the Cult.  They don’t feel they need to make a noise and suddenly they found they had to be very noisy indeed.”
            “Bit like today, right!”
            “Totally.  I think we had an awareness our leaders were sitting on the fence.  It’s like they got off and headed in totally the wrong direction.”
            “But the bottom line here has to be Ciletij is split and that surely is a grave political problem.”
            “If you look at our border, most of it’s with Cult Kadun. There’s an awful lot of trade aross that border, there’s been a lot of infiltration.  Does’t mean beings of pure evil, amoral, do business with anyone. That’s the hard line.  Providing jobs.”
            “Some have said blackmail by Azt.  Reading between the lines here, any kind of invasion that would be civil war, right.”
            “I’m no kind of military strategist,” said Gulan, “but – throw everything they’ve got at us, leave Azt undefended for Sarat to walk in?  I understand – the idea they’d surrender Kadun but I just can’t see them – being able to bear to.”
            “So maybe they wouldn’t go  far from the border in case they had to get back in a hurry!”
            “Is your military going to do what they did in Kadun?”
            “I can’t even pretend to answer that.”
            “Sure, sure, but – you have a kind of national service, don’t you.  All you ladies been in the military?”
            “Yes.”
            “So the bottom line – exactly what you do expect your dear old grandad to do!”
            “I know what I’d do,” said Gulan.
            “And what is that!”
            “Get FAF back now!  There is this thing called the Quadrant, I know it’s ack over now, but let’s pretend!  Ask for FAF to defend our borders.  Talk to Sarat, make friends.  If the rest of the continent is against us, we have big problems.  If it isn’t, we still have problems but nothing that can’t be solved.”
            “What is this,” said   “Fidub have been our allies for like forever, suddenly Fidub are evil incarnate?”
            “Everyone hates the thought of fighting,” said Gulan, “but if there’s one thing Kadun’s experience has proved, you can’t deal with the Cult through politics.  Exactly what Asdinan said.”
            “Hang on, I thought you were No To War.  Oh no, of course there wouldn’t be one, would there.  They are not going to send in the vamps to be slaughtered by FAF.”
            “If there’s one thing everyone sane wants, it’s Kadun’s war to stay in Kadun.”
Sarat’s tech-fiend Army rapidly found he was also perfectly competent at physics and maths.  Tell him what you’re doing and he actually understands it.  Good modern kid lives in the modern world.  Something else, said Paw.  Tech doesn’t have class, tech doesn’t have nationality.  What they did not want was a lot of old fogeys using quills at the top. Sarat thought a minute, then asked clubs? Enthusiasts? They didn’t know but post-haste sought to find out.
Other hthings he had not known about: some of the guys wore elasticated bracelets of three rows of daisies, or a single line of daisies round their necks.  He guessed it was something to do with earthpower and it must be profound or it wouldn’t have been permitted. Some sort of talisman?  He didn’t ask them, not because he didn’t want to show himself ignorant but because they might feel they looked superstitious and silly, though he actually didn’t think that.  A bit of auto-suggestion never did any harm and if plastic daisies made them feel stronger and more empowered, fine!  Then he wondered if it was just maybe some particular kind of earthpower, as was symbolized by the dark green hair.  It was interesting that some things ran so deep that regulation dress was ignored, but what exactly were those things.  He asked a cat, who told him.  Oh dear, dear, dear.  Men who’ve been raped by the Cult, mentally if not physically.  As you say, auto-suggestion, a sort of magic circle inside which they’re safe. It’s more than that.  There’s a little circle of light in their heads and they’re safe inside that.  When they have nightmares, the things can’t get inside the circle.  The daisies are an outward symbol of that. What happens when they have nightmares? asked Sarat.  The other guys call a cat.  We basically just sit with them and affirm that they can do it.  Sarat said bluntly, anything else like that I ought to know? The cat smiled.  The Emperor’s Peace. I do know about that, said Sarat.  Context?  They know they’re safe now you’re here.  Obviously, said Sarat, I’m not intending to expose them to that kind of danger.  It’s still rather a high responsibility.  They don’t talk about it with ordinary people, said the cat.  Sarat cocked his head.  You think I should - ?  It’s a bit ye mythic powers of ye emperor.  The cat laughed.  Auto-suggestion, you said it. 
Meanwhile in Var-sega’….I am standing here in the middle of Girag.  It would appear forward thinking young women have responded as one united under the banner, Just because we don’t, doesn’t mean we won’t.  This I am tolder older people find a little startling but they do so in Ciletij do they not.  The girls look wide eyed and say it’s their duty to the empire!!
            Karula looked at herself naked in the mirror and deemed she had been taking insufficient exercise to be fully fit for duty.   She didn’t think she had the time to be a fashion designer, sartorial trends for the (slightly)  more mature figure.  I am not damn’ fat!  Possibly a little lumpy.  The hat and gilet can sure be standard kit.  A number of young women of the less svelte kind reached a similar conclusion.
            Maya, a number of people were relieved to see, appeared in the same fatigues and gilet.
 
            Varchulan had sent  minions to ask if Gulan and her friends would join him on camera outside the Senate.
            “You are penniless students, are you not.  You require the State pays your fare to Fidub?”
            “That would be wonderful,” said Gulan.
            “perhaps a little over-dressed. Why would anyone speak with you?  The Quadrant is history.”
            “The Quadrant is something you buried alive.  Under the ground it’s still screaming.”
            “Nonsense.  Fidub broke the Quadrant.”
            “Pentangle,” said Gulan.
            “You believe that is possible?”
            “We’ll talk to anyone,” said Gulan, “including Sarat.  What harm can it do, we have no authority?”
            “Indeed.  Whom do you represent?”
            “The future,” said Gulan.  “We’re really going to sit growling cut off from the rest of the continent?”
            “you believe this madness in Kadun can work?”
            “Why shouldn’t it?  Everyone wants a sane future.  The young guys want it for themselves and the older ones want it for their kids.”
            “You have contacts in the Army of All-Kadun?”
            “No.  They wouldn’t be backing Sarat otherwise.”
            “He is a convenient figurehead
            “For what? Malign and hostile forces?”
            “The young always think youth will conquer the world.”
            “But they can’t manipulate him.”
            “That is naïve.”
            “That is fact!  For a start he can always go back to Fidub and be a biologist.”
            “And surrender all power?”
            “If you’re being made to do something you don’t want to do, you don’t have any power.”
            “What’s he supposed to be giving up?  Ceremony, pomp?  The really expensive lifestyle!  I mean come on, if Sarat wanted big shiny limousines and people waiting on him.”
            “That,” said Varchulan, “I cannot deny.”
            “I don’t know anyone in the Kadun military, but I do know people in our military.  Don’t forget we’ve all been squaddies!”
            “No,” said Varchulan, “I should not forget that.”
            “Are we getting anywhere?”
            “Where do you wish to go?”
            “Carlin, Var-sega’, Dabida, Fidub…Maybe you want us out of the way?”
            Varchulan pretended to look shocked.
            “A fact-findng mission.”
            “You’ve been in office six years and you don’t have the facts?  You want us to talk to Sarat because you won’t.  Why won’t you?”
            “He is not an elected leader.”
            “That is a prim proper legalistic answer and it’s garbage.”
            “No, it’s not,” said .  It’s the root of the whole mess.  Why he’s never talked to the K for Kewl Kadun military, I mean they’re saving their country, they’re heroes, but they’re not legit heroes, right?”
            “So you’ll talk to Azt beecuas it your confused mind Azt are legitimate?”
            “They are the government.  They represent Kadun on the world-stage.”
            “Even that is – cow-manure.  They don’t represent Kadun in Dabida or Fidub.”
            “So the strings are being pulled in the Federation?”
            “So Dabida and Fidub by extension are renegade outlaw States?”
            Gulan pretended to look very shocked indeed
            “No decent Ciletij – we’re indecent ones.”
            “Exactly,” said Varchulan.  “You represent no-one.  You have no official status.” You are perfect.
            “You make that sound like some unbreakable rule.  Qistarl has already gone to Fidub.”
            “He is not the government.”
            “So  - Azt says no member of the government can talk to Fidub now and you go along with it?”
            “So,” said Gulan, “just suppose, let’s pretend.  Let’s pretend we went to Fidub and talked to Airoch and she said of course and here are FAF winging their way and our guys, our good guys, have to chase them away because they represent your government?  That – is – insane.”
            “You’re really not at all stupid,” approved Varchulan.
Gulan got up.
            “Thank you for your time, Grandad!  Not sure where we’re going, but we’ll get there.”
            The three of them retreated eventually to Gulan’s huge warm and ancient flat, part of a monumental edifice of dirty sandstone.
            On Sarat’s to-do list was talking to the medics about the guys’ general health and well-being.  He was pretty sure all was fine, at least here in Carlin, good food, fresh air and exercise not being lacking, but now here was an overlay unlooked-for, on which he would be interested in a standard medical opinion.  Beatings, rape, torture no reason to think the trauma was all mental. He mailed the senior medical officer
From Sarat:
Subject: Daisy-chains ?other walking wounded
Hi,
I hadn’t realized some of the guys had had run-ins.  I’ve been filled in by one of the cats.  I’d like to have a chat with you sometime about the more medical side.  Are you free this afternoon?
Operating till 4, replied Remelin.
4.30, typed Sarat.  I have an office.  It’s not large but it is private.  See you then.
Remelin pondered and decided he’d bet a large sum of money no-one had given Sarat access to medical records.
Do you have access to FOOTPRINT?  Medical records.
No, replied Sarat.
Get you a log-in.
Appreciated.  Thx.
“Ciletij, Sarat! You have caused an explosion!”
“Of a good kind,” said Sarat mildly.
A bit later
“If all you want to talk about is Ciletij, go there!”
“Bit of difficulty getting in from the evil empire,” threw in Baz.
“You had enough to say yesterday!”
“About Ciletij in relation to Kadun.”
“But it’s all about Ciletij in relation to Kadun.”
“Nothing’s changed,” pointed out Sarat. “Ciletij are yelling at Ciletij about Ciletij in relation to Kadun.  That’s for them to sort.”
“You must have views on the wolf cubs!”
Sarat grinned.
“Always happy to talk.”
“Is that an invitation, Sarat?”
“If they want to talk to me, that’s cool.  But the people they need to talk to are in the south.  I can’t do anything to resolve this.”
“Except take Azt!”
“Hey, you listened!  Ex-actly.”
“I’m thinking something that is frankly big fat grin.  Some kid is strongly advising Airoch to talk to some other kids.”
“The next generation of Ciletij leadership,” suggested Sarat.
“Now that is quite a big one.  These girls are no dodos.  They are not going to be forgiving if Ciletij goes pear-shaped because no-one would listen to them.”
“You heard what they said,” said Sarat.  “They stand for the Quadrant.  If the Quadrant ignores them, the whole continent is pear-shaped.”
Gulan’s mates in the military thought no.  Talk to Sarat you can’t avoid the Kadun military, next thing you know it’s a load of shit about consorting with the enemy. You simply don’t need it.  Bule had what she thought was a lightbulb moment. Maya said she was going back to Zur at one point.  She has to go south first, like everyone else. Meet her in Vasucula.  Gulan pointed out that meant she had to liaise with Maya, like now, instant, could be leaving at any minute, and she didn’t quite know how to do that.  Dabidan Rep Centre, said Bule.  You tell me the H-W don’t know how to contact her, I shan’t believe you, but even if they don’t, they’ll know how to contact A-M and if you tell me Vij Talal doesn’t know how to contact his baby sister I really shan’t believe you. Given approximately ten seconds to decide about this, Gulan decided no.  All a bit hyper and our business is the Quadrant.  What we need to do – I’m making this up as I go along but so are you!  Get people together who believe in the Quadrant.  Maybe a delegation of us could go to Carlin? Though of course they could be at war at any minute.  We all could, replied Bule grimly.  North or south. The whole bloody continent is waiting for Azt. 
            The Press in Carlin thought the whole bloody continent was merely waiting for what the Imperial Army thought of their new boss, as if the mural hadn’t told them.  The guys variously allowed that Sarat was a good bloke, solid, and that you could tell he was proper posh because he had real manners.  Since impeccable behaviour was not perhaps considered as completely synonymous with the sworn enemy of dumbfuck crap, the wasps swarmed round that particular jam-jar, but not before they’d been told Sarat was the best thing that could happen to Kadun, last thing they wanted was old fogeys with quills.  Innovation, that was the thing.  It’s exciting.  I think there is little doubt, panted journos, that this Kadun can be a world-beater.  Of course the implications for the continent have yet to be fully analysed….The impeccable behaviour turned out to centre round a tea-dispenser when Sarat behaved like any normal person would, passing polystyrene cups around with the best of them, do you want milk, are you OK there, like any good host concerned his guests had all they required.  Of course they’re like that at the House too.  Something else there, isn’t there, tech doesn’t have class, it doesn’t have nationality.  You are beginning to get this guys.  People began to refer to something called The Sarat Paradox which turned out to be that what was most important about him to Kadun was what was least imperial.  He reacts like an ordinary guy….Yeah, well, he would: he is an ordinary guy.  Well, at any rate he was brought up like one.  Interestingly, it is clear Kadun equally has time for the idea of Maya dolled up in the Severin Rubies, even if they are borrowed!  But I think that may come under the category of a little fun, a little glitz, a little bling, rather than a state occasion!  In any case looking at Maya it is for the moment clear they can go whistle, at any rate on the diamonds front.  Both of them today are again not dressed demurely.  Sarat is wearing an olive shirt over a black PANTHER T, the snarling head of a panther and the legend PANTHER PROTECTS.
            Remelin was shown in.
            “Brill, come in,” said Sarat, getting up.  “Do sit.”
            REmelin made polite noises.
            “Coffee?” enquired the cat who’d shown him in.  “Tea? Your beverage of choice?”
            They settled and Sarat cut to the chase.
            “I’m assuming they’d be fine in all – what shall we call them, normal battlefield conditions.  There isn’t going to be anything normal about what’s going to go down here. It’ll all be the good stuff.  There is no question of their being exposed to the bad stuff.  But it’ll be on the same level as the bad stuff, as in things a long way outside the range of normal.  Not sure of the effect. It’s a basic question of keeping control of one’s own mind.  Obviously if they’re – entranced, dancing with the stars, they’re no more functional than if they were screaming. That said it should be a long way away.”  He grinned.  “I shall now tell you what the hell I’m talking about.”  He explained about the greatest show on earth, with particular reference to trying to make Corsin think a couple of idiot kids thought it could all be done with tech.  “Obviously this is something new in the annals.  I think probably the only way to know how they’ll react is to show them and ask them.  Even then it’ll be different for everyone.  I did think I should talk personally to the guys worst affected.”
            You are bloody interesting, thought Remelin, fascinated by the VR for its own sake, apart from being a little sweetheart, that is.  He informed Sarat there was an outer circle of men who’d seen things people should not see and also that the guys had a sort of informal club overseen by cats, mutual support, but didn’t add that he thought there were probably few things more therapeutic than a dashing young emperor who took the piss out of Corsin.  Sarat said he reckoned he understood that what they most wanted to do was fight the bastards and would not take kindly to any suggestion they weren’t fit for duty, it was probably basically a question of where they were sited.  So long as they fry, said Remelin.  There’s a nice young lad, Sloti.  Bright.  In that doleful expression we use in more mundane circumstances, good insight.Together they examined Sloti’s medical records.  Can you ask him to come and see me, said Sarat.  Tell him if he doesn’t want to talk about it, that’s absolutely cool, but I’d still like to meet him.  And if he wants to bring a friend, that’s cool too.  D’you want to sit in?
            Sarat had discovered by now that his hut included a sitting-room/dining-room with two old armchairs and a table with two kitchen chairs: seating for five, including the table.  Sloti had wanted to bring three friends and Remelin had assured him that would be fine, so here we had a slightly tight fit of eight.  We’ll sit on the floor, said Sarat, and did.   Just sit down, guys, relax.
Start with your names.  Just making tea, said Paw. 
There are some things I need to talk to you about, started Sarat.  Some of it, cats have probably told you, so sorry if I’m telling you things you know already.  You heard me talk about special effects.  When PANTHER fight Corsin, we’re going to use a lot of sounds and pictures.”  Baz grinned and Baya’s voice rang out.  “That’s my mum.  Like that.  Of course PANTHER will do the heavy stuff but the more that’s thrown at Corsin, the more they have to check out, the more they don’t know exactly where the real attack is.”  Baz generated a silver silver birch in the middle of the room.  “Now that’s pure PANTHER stuff.  You know it’s not real because real trees don’t look like that – “ Baz changed it to a more realistic image.  “ – or grow instantly in the middle of rooms!”  Baz shrugged and said, Nature has her little ways.  The room appeared to open out into a grove.  “All of it is basically playing with people’s brains.  I’ve asked you to come here tonight because I know you’ve had the bad guys playing with your brains.  That makes you a bit different from ordinary people.  I’m wondering how you feel about the good stuff.  Does it worry you?”
Their faces showed him the answer.
“Just kill ‘em, sir, just fry ;em.”
“We shall. Right, now it gets a bit more complicated.  Just because it’s we good guys – it’s aimed at the enemy, so it can still be a startling.”  The grove turned into a runway.  “Or even a bit frightening.”  The golden wolves bounded by.  “You need to be clear about what’s real.  There are no wolves in Carlin!  Remember all this will be in the open and probably in the dark.  It’ll seem even realer then.  It’s not even going to be near where the Army are but it’s pretty flat around here and you’ll probably be able to see it, which could be a problem for anyone.  I do need to talk to everyone about this, but you guys are maybe more sensitive to different realities so I thought I’d start with you.  You’re in a field in the dark.  You’re actively looking for signs of enemy activity.  You notice everything, yes?  Maybe you saw something, maybe you didn’t.  Hard enough without a bunch of mad cats putting on a slide-show.  It gets worse. There won’t be much of this and as I said it’ll be a long way away but it’s something it’s quite hard not to hear, quite hard to ignore.”
The music of the Isles bubbled through the room.  Remelin jerked his head up sharply.  Sarat was completely unprepared for what happened next.
“That’s real power,” said Sloti, as though explaining it to a class.  He pulled off his bracelet.  “Can I just leave this with you, sir.  Don’t think I need it any more now.”
“Of course you can,” said Sarat
The lean spindly guy touched his necklace.
“Give it to you, guv,” Defo an emphasis on the ‘you’. 
The third guy said, again as though explaining to a class, “I’m Hoosa.  It’s all I have to be, you see. 
Fascinating.  But battle-ready?  Quite possibly, thought Remelin, they wouldn’t react like that in the heat of things, just feel empowered.  .
In Zur the cartoonist of Purple Prose, whose name is Frita, snuggled under his duvet and thought, I’m famous!  The words ‘poaching talent’ floated into his mind.  Never in a billion trillion years had it occurred to him he had a future in Kadun.  Ridiculous, he was Zur-bred!  All the same, a real live struggle for gay rights.  Did he want to be some sort of hero or something?  He wasn’t a coward either but what he actually was, he observed to himself, was not very tall and not very broad and not magnificently fit either what with his twisted foot; in any kind of physical confrontation he was liable to lose badly.  No-one was beating up or likely to the guys at Sarat’s press conference.  Something was beginning to sprout in his brain saying exciting, want to see.
Vanya said, publicly, which did nothing for relations with the duly elected government of Ciletij, “More damn sense in five minutes than we’ve had in five years.”
            Others just chortled.  Clearly another highly political family.  Love to be fly on wall.
            They chortled that in G-T too of course.
           
            “Gulan – do you have any plans to be President of Ciletij?”
            “That would up to the Ciletij people.”
            “You know damn’ well what I mean!”
            “I’m a political animal, of course I am.”
            “Howl, howl!  Would you that apart from this, which has managed to get the whole continent howling, the government here is reasonably approved of.  With regard to those internal matters, taxes and new housing!”
            “Yes,” said Gulan.  “People actually like him.”
            “So that’s part of it, right?  Garbage from someone you dislike is more expected.”
 
            And, reported Bris, Varchulan darling bellowed with laughter.  Not, he hastened to add in a silly little girl way but in an OK, it’s a hold-up way. 
            “Didn’t I meet her?” rearkaed Treva, “highly intelligent young lady, should go far.”
            “Oh, she will,” said Varchulan.  “Excellent experience.  We wish transparency, I think.”
            “So she wants to negotiate with Fidub, does she.”