"Should we go back?" Elisabeth asked.

Heinrich didn't answer. He had no answer. Erwin had told him to continue his mission and babysit Arthur Wallman.

Now, he didn't have to like it, but that was not an order he was going to disobey. The question was if they could do the babysitting where they could also help Erwin and the TADAT left behind.

Would Arthur agree to return north? Probably. He wasn't as callous as Heinrich had first thought, just too sure of himself.

"Elisabeth, I don't know," Heinrich admitted. "This is way, way over our heads."

She looked at him. Her eyes were red from crying. She'd clung to him like a child during the night.

Their own government guilty of an open act of war. Five hundred years of peace and it was the federation that broke it.

Heinrich doubted if the government had ever been directly involved in giving those orders, but he didn't need to be a political genius to understand that they would be blamed anyway. After all, someone must have given the explicit orders to send Goodard here.

"I think it won't matter. We're too far away to get there in time to stop whatever Goodard is up to."

"He murdered them!"

"Elisabeth I know. I think everyone knows. Red News, remember. Three stayed with Erwin, well with that Martian goon anyway."

She nestled under his arm.

For the first time during their journey they'd set up field perimeter defences Not because they were needed but because he had seen their need to do something. Everyone helped, even the news team set up a few sensors.

They'd done a surprisingly good job of it, Heinrich recalled. By now he suspected he knew how they managed to get those covert holos.

From the other side of their camp the steady drone of a conversation reached him. Arthur and Ken. Talking, possibly comparing notes from seven hundred years apart. Anything that would banish what had happened yesterday.

The only one who got no respite was himself, but he was in command. That was to be expected. If the need became bad enough he could cry on Erwin's shoulders when they returned. For now though, he had to be their rock of confidence.

"Liz," he had earned the right to call her that now, "today we rest. I'll tell the others."

She crept closer. The toughest soldier he'd ever served with, but a frontal assault into a pirate base was not the same as watching how your own shot unarmed and unshielded shuttles over a population centre Sometimes he wished they'd been forced to destroy their holo receivers, or at least that the last decade hadn't seen them built into body walker helmets.

He was worried, more than he wanted to admit. The TADAT back at Verd were effectively unarmed now. Vastly better armoured than anything Goodard could put his hands on, but unarmed.

Gatling guns and needle grenades shredded whatever unpowered armour a soldier could carry, well, maybe with the exception of Gring and her kind, but Goodard had brought a few armoured vehicles with him. From what Heinrich had seen the unit in Verd had nothing left that could penetrate that kind of armour, and that, as far as he was concerned, was an invitation to disaster.

What would eventually force the brigadier's hand did work in his favour for the time. The launch port had a holo cube so whatever Red News had been casting was available for the officers there to analyse

They might be trigger happy lunatics, but they should be able to realize the change in firing pattern of all body walkers when they ran out of missiles.

Heinrich ground his teeth but held his thoughts to himself. Whatever happened there was nothing he could do, and if the madman in command at the launch port was prepared to start a war then he would certainly not balk at the thought of killing the man Keen valued so highly.

***

Trindai listened to the pleading and denial with only half an ear. He was surprised he hadn't become more furious than he was, but Keen was on war foot and that somehow made an attack more understandable.

Admiral Radovic wanted Keen to allow him to throw explosives on the launch port from the sky and for once the council was united in their refusal.

The liaison from the Republic of Mars, William Anderson advocated caution, but even he had declared that he would support the federation if they took military action against the renegade officer.

The third sky kingdom, New Sweden, had no official liaison in Verd, not anyone alive at least. A woman named Anita Kirchenstein-Yui acted as their temporary official here, and she had been livid from the moment she found herself among the few survivors landing outside Verd.

To Trindai's supreme shock she refused to take part in any military action against Brigadier Goodard and his soldiers. Diplomatic channels and restitution were words she used frequently though, and Erwin winced visibly every time she used the latter. Still, they had been massacred. Of twenty sky ships only four landed safely and another two crashed with survivors, and still she refused what she called an escalation of armed conflict.

That was something more that cowardliness. It was cowardliness raised to an ideal worth dying for, and Trindai was at a loss how to react. In his world you fought for what you believe in, and you made sure you had the best weapons and the best training, because if at all possible you should never have to fight, just show those big, ugly fists to anyone who needed threatening.

That woman was prepared to die. She wasn't happy about it, quite the opposite, but she just wasn't prepared to use armed force to defend her beliefs. That made no sense at all. The third sky kingdom had no right to exist at all if it was undefended. The presence of outworlder soldiers proved that. If you had soldiers you had fighting, somewhere.

He looked at the woman. Hair as black as those from the Sea of the Mother or Khi and face resembling that of a Khi citizen. That made her stand out. Most of the survivors were light in complexion, more so than the average outworlder.

She was also far shorter, almost short enough to go unnoticed here. Made up for it with energy in abundance though, and a hatred so strong it made her position on armed resistance just so much stranger.

Her stand, though, didn't make Erwin pull his reins the least. He begged. He threatened. He lied and he promised. He was a man possessed, and Trindai had seen his share of soldiers close to hysteria to recognize deeply hidden combat memories emerging from the black corner where they had been safely stuffed away. There had been rumours, and the blossoms of death in the air confirmed them. Something had gone terribly wrong that day fifteen years ago when outworlders first came here, and Erwin had been among them.

Trindai remembered. A younger man that day, but old enough to be colonel. Dragon flowers they had called the spectacle in the sky. Now he knew what those flowers were. His soldiers were just starting to bury their fruit.

Had Erwin lost friends that day? Probably. Family? Maybe. How many had died? And how had they died? It smelled of dragons meddling. Ira, Rhuin or Khanati might have the power to take on a sky ship, but the dragon flowers had been all over the world. Trindai could hardly recall anyone old enough to remember who hadn't seen them. It had the stench of meddling dragons all over it.

He watched Erwin storm out of the council chamber spitting angry words in English on his way. The anger was understandable, but the outworlder general with his men were only a trains ride from Verd and Erwin's allies were high up in the sky, and everyone had seen what happened to sky ships trying to land under outworlder opposition. Keen couldn't afford to take that risk.

William shrugged and apologized on Erwin's behalf, and behind him an outworlder gathered together his collection of flying gadgets. Red News. One of the team from the first surprise landing on the training grounds.

Trindai smiled at the man. He had been ordered to. Mairild probably thought a military man abhorred the presence of a mere citizen during an important meeting. He didn't. If the outworlders could use their own version of the farwriter to tell their own what happened here Keen stood to benefit, and Trindai was far more interested in results than the means to get them.

With the newscaster, he tasted the foreign expression in his mouth, out of the room they sat down to discuss how to meet the new threat without resorting to a military gamble.

William didn't have much help to offer. He promised to sign a statement where they protested against the killing, but there was little more he could do.

"I'll send out scouts," Trindai offered. It had to be dragoons. Horses would be too visible at close range, which meant putting the Imperial Guard in the field.

"And Verd?" Minister de Saiden asked. He echoed Trindai's thoughts.

Trindai tried to look thoughtful, but this was only part of a rehearsed performance for the rest of the council. "The brigade has enough training to take care of the patrols and be used for the training of a second brigade as well," he answered.

Olvar nodded, as did Mairild and Makarin. Tenanrild looked unhappy but she agreed as Trindai knew she would. Even Glarien nodded his approval and that gesture quickly brought the others in line.

"We still have a lot of wounded to care for," William translated Anita's words.

"We will do our best, but we're stretched thin I'm afraid," the Minister of Education, Irtina de Gelven, answered.

"More so than we had hoped," Garkain, Minister of Craft, filled in unhelpfully.

Tenanrild glared at him. "Could not blame them. Not asked to be killed in the sky," she said. Minister of Transportation, and with a severe attitude whenever the transportation of anything ended in disaster. Garkain would pay for his choice of words for a long time.

"I think we could help you," Anita persisted with the help of William.

That got everyone's attention. Even William halted his translation and gaped at her.

"And just how do you plan to do that?" Irtina asked. "You aren't all doctors I guess."

Anita smiled, a sad, longing smile. "No, I am the one of two who survived. My husband is the other and he's dying in that pigsty you call hospital," she added.

"That pigsty, as you so kindly refer to, is the finest clinic there is, unless you resort to the dirty practices of Ri Khi."

She had to say that, Trindai observed. He'd almost forgotten just how strongly she held to the views of the Ministry of Magehunting.

"Any practice that saves lives without taking them is a good practice where I come from," Anita answered. William had to be coerced to translate that, but Trindai had seen Mairild's grimace long before William's words filled the room.

"Relent! From such unholy thoughts comes the temptation to commit vileness!"

Trindai shared a silent thought with Mairild. Hepaten ar el de Levius couldn't have stayed his words even if he had wanted to, but the Minster of Magehunting was a fanatic believer in his work and never needed much of a reason to voice his thoughts on that matter.

The heavyset man originally came from Ira, as did so many of those who hated the forbidden arts the most. It wasn't so strange. Small but powerful Ira was a haven for any user of the arts, and those without that power were treated as second rate humans. Trindai knew more than a few fled Keen for a similar reason. Most ended up in Ira, just as fanatical in their opposite belief. There was a certain poetic balance to be found in that truth.

He frowned. The last five years hadn't seen many people moving anywhere a horse or their legs couldn't take them. The raiders had put a stop to that.

William shone with relief as he started to translate Anita's next words, and Trindai saw Mairild smile approvingly before he heard them.

"We would never resort to magic for the simple reason we don't know any. The refined arts of education and technology are allowed here if I understand."

Irtina smiled. Anita had tickled her ego the right way, and Hepaten leaned back in his chair once again.

Trindai let out his breath again. That had been a little too close.

"We could aid you with medical..." William stopped mid sentence and interrupted what Anita was saying. He gasped and Trindai had to look at Mairild for understanding. She sat upright as if someone had tied a spear to her back. Her face had drained of all colour

William shouted at Anita, and to Trindai's surprise Mairild joined in. He could hardly understand a word. There was far too much emotion and the words came too fast for his basic understanding of English to suffice. This wouldn't do.

"Silence!" He stared at Olvar. They had roared the same command with voices meant for the battlefield.

It worked as intended.

"Now, proceed," Olvar said, "so the rest of us can understand."

"She's insane!" Mairild said.

"A madwoman," William agreed. "She thinks just because we've established an embassy here you're bound by the treaties we've signed back home."

Anita growled something. Part of it Trindai understood. De Vhatic had its own fair share of those words, and most never left the confines of barracks. Then she rose, still growling curses and left them with a satisfied grin on her face.

"Mairild, please, and slowly for the rest of us mortals," Makarin said.

William stood, but Mairild waved for him to take his seat again. "We need you to explain the words. I understood them, but not all they really meant."

William sat. "I'll tell you. Please wait with your questions until after I'm done," he said.

Trindai shrugged. This was council business now. He'd be called to clean up the mess, whatever form it took, and from William's expression it was certain to be dirty.

"New Sweden has already decided to take matters in their own hands," William begun. "They've decided that Verd is a war zone with insufficient medical supplies."

Mairild nodded for him to continue as he fell silent.

"Using the treaty of Perth as an excuse they've declared the fields south of Verd as a restricted drop zone." He stammered, coughed but refused to continue.

"We must know," Mairild told him.

"We'll have to declare war on the Terran Federation. She has to be stopped!"

"What?" Olvar said.

The room had become utterly silent. They didn't fully understand, but it was clear that more than the present danger had been added to the scales.

"All signatories have agreed to declare war on anyone who breaks that treaty," William said as if the words had any meaning for the rest of them. "The idiots have already announced that they'll commit the forced drop of a field hospital into a war zone. They have also declared that it will be unarmed and unshielded." William's voice broke, and Trindai saw that he was close to tears.

"I think I understand where this is going, but be specific. If Verd is going to become a battlefield in a war between outworlder kingdoms we deserve to know," Olvar said.

"A field hospital is a purely humanitarian organization. The treaty forces them to aid both sides in a conflict, and from what I've seen of your doctors you could use what they have to offer."

"And the conflict?" Olvar nudged.

"You don't open fire on a hospital. Never. Not even by accident," William said. "The conflict will not be restricted to Otherworld. You have to help me stop her."

"On the contrary," Verkai de Partaken suddenly said. The Minister of Law had sat silent and brooding for the entire meeting, but now his face radiated a grim determination. "Well make room for their kind offer. I'll personally see to that our own doctors are present to welcome their outworlder colleagues. We will aid them in any way they want, even to the extent of supplying personnel to the hospital."

You bastard! You wonderful, cold hearted genius bastard son of a gherin!

"You'd..." William's voice broke. "You'd declare war on the federation?"

"Of course." Verkai looked around the table where one council member after another slowly nodded their approval. Even Mairild did. "We could never stand aside and watch such a noble cause succumb to murderers and lawbreakers."

"You're mad! You won't stand a chance!"

"We know. We'll face annihilation if need be. Please make sure your government knows, and all other governments in outworld."

William gasped, but eventually he slowly nodded. He still looked aghast, but a knowing frown took over from his previous look of utter shock.

"You play a very dangerous game here, but I'll do as you ask," he said. Then he smiled unexpectedly. "Erwin will like this. Oh yes, he will like this very much," William added and laughed.