PLANET 5 / CH. 5: SURRENDER

RESIDENCE OF THE DAHEL REPRESENTATIVE.

“Representative Hayeel, Do not fear,” Esme said, “The soldiers are for my protection, not to arrest anyone.”

“I know so little,” Hayeel replied, I do not know if I somehow break laws I do not know, or accidentally shame someone. And I am sorry, I don't know you, do I?”

“I am Esmetherelda, the princess-regent. That is to say, my father the king is not well, so I rule in his place. May we come in and talk?”

“Humbly, and not meaning disrespect, but what about your brother?”

“My brother, prince Henk, broke many laws. My mother broke a few, but mainly because of fear and ignorance, not malice. One law my brother broke was that he had me kidnapped, and held prisoner. Another is that he invited mercenaries into the palace, another is he prevented my father from taking his medicine.”

“Such a bad son! Please, come in.”

“Yes. He brings shame to my whole family, but shame is not as important here as you are used to. To bring ones father shame is not death, not even when father is the king. But he has broken laws that mean he will die, I am sure.”

“You understand my culture well, your highness.”

“I am afraid I know only a little of your culture. I hope from my ignorance I do not cause you offence or shame. If my answers seem very appropriate it is because by God's grace I have what is known as the gift of Tesk, that is to say I hear what you are thinking. I heard the ambassador of Tesk thinking of you earlier, and thought it would be good to talk. Firstly, you do not need someone to introduce you to court on each occasion. Your late husband introduced you, we know who you are; that is sufficient. Your papers have not come, I know, but we know that it is a long way, and sometimes governments are slow to decide things. So, please understand this. While my father is ill, I rule with his power. I do not need more papers, he told all that I should rule if he were sick, and he gave me a ring that says I rule in his place if he cannot rule. So when I speak to you now, I speak with the authority of my father. The respect we had for your late husband, and the honour in which we held him, we honour you with. You have our deep sympathy for your loss, and it would be nice for you to have the certainty that comes from papers, but you need no papers to talk to me. You need no intermediary to talk to me, or to my father when he recovers. You do not have the paperwork of ambassador, but in my eyes you have all the rights and privileges of ambassador, and I will call you ambassador. Maybe it is normal for an ambassador to be a man, but my father has said that it is his will that I will be queen when he dies, and I will prefer to talk to women ambassadors. If you have worries or fears, please tell me. If you wish for protection, for body-guards, please tell me, it would cause me great shame if you were hurt, or robbed or tricked.”

“Perhaps I have been tricked already.” Hayeel said.

“Tesk is not a powerful country. I heard the ambassador for Tesk thinking how pleasant it is that you look to him for help. I do not know if he has not told you these things to deliberately keep that situation for a sense of power, or because he is forgetful or thinks you know them, or because he is a man and you are an attractive woman. If I thought that he set out to trick you, I would have him sent home. If you wish me to ask him, I will. And I will hear what he thinks, and he knows that.”

“Thank you. He has seemed friendly, but has not told me what I should know.”

“Why should you know them? You are from a long way away.”

“My father was from Tesk, I thought I would understand more than I do.”

“Ah! That is how you speak our language?”

“Yes. But my father was often away from home, so I do not speak very well.”

“But he told you of the gift of Tesk?”

“Yes, highness.”

“Did he talk of the catalyst?”

“The King of the Three Isles does not visit Tesk now. The catalyst was something they brought.”

“The catalyst was something they are, and that they do not visit was the decision of Tesk. I introduce to you Hal, prince of the Three Isles, soon to be my husband. There are no guarantees, but you are as much a daughter of Tesk as me. If you would like to join me, Hal and my sisters and maybe the men they think hopeful thoughts about this evening, we will be sitting and talking and eating. Yesterday evening we spent two hours with one of my sisters who now finds she is better able to understand her friend than she was before. Perhaps it would be useful for you to have such understanding as you are in a strange land with strange customs. Or perhaps you will simply be reassured to meet my family.”

“The ambassador of Tesk is not invited?”

“No, certainly not. Female ambassadors with relatives from Tesk get special treatment.”

“Even if they don't have that title?”

“Even if the paperwork is very very slow coming, and you need to wait a long time for your home country to call you by that title, you are welcome. Even if it is not paper that comes, but some grumpy man claiming the title for himself, if you have visited us enough, you will be a friend and will still be welcome.”

“My fear is that a grumpy man as you say will come, and I will have to choose between him or no home, no income.”

“Is your government so cruel and heartless?”

“That they would promise me, who has honourable post of ambassador's wife, to a new ambassador? They would see it as maintaining my honour. They would see it as heartless to send a new ambassador who has a wife already.”

“In Caneth and in the Three Isles, it is not unheard of for parents to talk and prepare a surprise for their children: 'we think you will find one another agreeable.' My father and Hal's father have had such discussions, but Hal and I met before we could be told of this surprise. But if the son or daughter do not like the surprise, if they find a flaw in the other, then there can be no punishment. If the parents say 'you must marry, or you will not live here,' then they do a terrible thing and the son or daughter should tell the courts this has happened, and the courts will say, parents, you may not do this, you may not try to force a marriage in this way.”

“And if it is a done thing?” Hayeel asked.

“In the Three Isles, then the parents will have a new home, behind bars, until two years after the son or daughter says 'I am happy with my wife or husband after all, and if he or she never does, then the parents stay in jail until the spouse dies,'”

“Really?” Esme asked, “Here it's a simple ten years.”

“The penalty for aggravated rape? We count it as selling someone into slavery.”

“Oh! I like that analogy.” Esme said.

“You do not allow slavery at all?” Hayeel asked.

“No, not for hundreds of years.”

“I had not seen slaves, but thought they were only inside. We have contact with Tew, but you are more different to Tew than I thought.”

“And are there slaves in Dahel?”

“Yes, many slaves-for-life. And also there are those who sell five or ten years of their lives so that their family will survive. They have some rights, but not many.”

“Tew also has those, and land-slaves, who have rights except to move home. We of Caneth do not,” Esme said.

“On the Three Isles, you can enter a contract for a loan where you must give a proportion of your wages to the person who made the loan, or work part of your time at a certain rate of pay. But no more than half, and the minimum rate of pay is set by the crown each year. It is not what they have in Tew. If the lender receives work he or she receives no money. On Tesk, it is similar, but the limit is three-quarters. If a person comes to the Three Isles, and says, 'I am from Tew, and had to sell so many years of my life, or from Tesk and had to give three quarters of my wages,' then the court will say, 'What was demanded of you is illegal here, you may stay.' And they are allowed to live and work there as a free person. But as a foreigner, if they commit a serious crime, we will send them home.”

“So they should learn your laws.” Hayeel said.

“Yes.”

“As must I learn the laws of Caneth.” Hayeel said.

“Honorary ambassador Hayeel, you must not steal either things or ideas, you must not lie to a court, you must not force anyone into slavery or an unwelcome marriage, you must not kill or wound except in self-defence, you should not commit adultery, or make a loan that is not on the basis of friendship, or try to change who rules. You should not sell things that are illegal or controlled by law. If you do one of these things, which are not compatible with the role of ambassador, you will be told you must leave. If you are found to be breaking a minor law, then as an honorary ambassador, you can expect to be told that what you are doing is illegal, and you will be expected to say 'sorry, I did not know', and then you will be expected not to do it again. If you have questions, or need advice advice, please ask.”

“Thank you, highness. You are kind.”

“It is my duty to to God to be kind. But may I ask? What resources do you have? How to you meet your needs for food?”

“Perhaps by breaking your laws. I do not know what is allowed, what is not. But my husband brought with him some things that are rare and have value. Stones and metals and medicines. Your brother introduced me to a certain man who asked what I had, and I showed him a small sample of the different substances. Some he was not interested in, others seemed to excite him greatly. What he paid for them... I do not know if it was a good price. I bargained with him, and I do not think I could have got more than I did, but it was far more than I expected. More, I think, than medicines should cost.”

“I am no expert in medicines, Hayeel. I know that my father now needs a medicine for his heart that is rare here and very expensive and... has other uses. It is not illegal, but it is not wise to start using it except in the greatest need, but it was safer than the alternative options.”

“You speak of a heart medicine that you must not stop suddenly?”

“Yes.”

“Maybe it is the same as the one I have. The man was not interested in that.”

“I ask that you speak at great length to my father's doctor, Hayeel. Did you sell the substance to this person here, or somewhere in the city?”

“Here,” Hayeel replied.

“Then, since this place is your embassy, you have at worst done something we would ask you not to do again. Do not fear the city guard, but perhaps you should fear criminals. It may be that the man you sold them to has committed a grave crime, and one who commits one grave crime may be willing to commit others.”

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“And if I fear criminals, as a single woman in this house, what should I do?”

“If you wish, I will order that guards be placed outside for the protection of the embassy. Also, it would not be unusual for you to hire someone to clean and shop and answer the door for you, maybe also do cooking. She would live here with you, and need to be paid, of course. That position is known as 'housekeeper'. There is another post, that of 'lady's companion', which is not that of a servant. She would be well-connected, for instance the daughter of a general, or the unmarried sister or daughter of a civil servant. Again, she would need pay and a room, and she would be someone you would expect to provide you with company, local advice, shopping tips, introductions to people, and so on. But she would be insulted if you asked her to clean for you.”

“Can you recommend people for such posts?”

“No. But my sisters or their friends might be able to. My younger sister is officially being courted by a captain, soon to be general, in our army. The other likes a man who is an accomplished musician and a music-teacher, and they are deciding if it is just that they will be friends or if they will start to court.”

“And neither of these people are too low for a princess?”

“Not at all. We do not have a large nobility, those who are not married, I either ridiculed when I was young or had their ears set on fire when they suddenly decided that I was the most beautiful of my father's daughters soon after I was named heir. My sisters and I do not always agree on everything, but for some reason neither of my unmarried sisters have shown any interest in someone I laughed out of the palace.”

“And you approve of their choices?”

“Will you tell me if you approve of them, Hayeel? You have been a married woman, after all, and know more of choosing a man and living with the consequences of that.”

“I? Not at all. As I speak this language, I was given honour to be language teacher and so I became a servant of the nation. Then I was asked which of my students was the best speaker, and who was second best, who was third best. And I named the best and second best, and I was told, they will be teachers after you are gone, your third-best student will be your husband, teach him more on the way. You will serve there together as honourable ambassador and honourable wife of ambassador,”

“You had no choice at all?” Esme asked.

“My father was a trader. He often did not have the correct paperwork, did not use the correct harbour or pay the correct taxes.”

“A smuggler?” Hal asked.

“Not deliberately. It is a little different, and it is difficult to ever have everything correct, because the rules change. He was slow making a large shipment, and the rules had changed. Deliveries at the start of the year had to start from one port, those at the end from another. He argued against the fine, saying he had left on time, but the official was insecure in his role and in a bad mood, and had him flogged and threw dirt into the wounds. There was an infection, and he died. Mother and I tried to nurse him, to clean the wounds, but without success.

"Mother had been his slave, officially, though he called her wife. He had debts, and as slave she was to be sold to whoever wanted her. She did not tell anyone that she took the heart medicine, so when they put her in the slave market, she died.”

“So to be teacher was a good role,” Esme said.

“Yes. I do not know if I mourn my dead husband. He told me, as he was dying, that it had been him who killed my father, and that is why he never touched me.

"On our wedding night he asked me about my life before I became his teacher. And he thanked me, and said 'maybe tomorrow I will tell you of my past', and went to sleep on the floor. The next day we left. For quarter of a year, as we travelled, during the day I taught him, but he did not speak of his past and at night I lay in a tent or in an inn beside him, waiting for him to take my body. I thought he must hate me, but it was himself he hated, and that is why he had refused to let me call for a doctor. He said it was justice.”

“But when you first came, you had guards.” Esme said.

“Yes. Their orders were to ensure we arrived safely, and to buy a suitable house - they chose this one — and report back on the journey and how we were received. I asked they delay until my husband was dead or better, and they agreed. The morning after he died, they left. I do not know if sending an ambassador was no more than an experiment, but I know very very little.”

“You have, I think, four choices,” Hal said. “You can go to Tesk and claim your rights as a free citizen there and be a teacher of Dahelese at the academy. They would probably be delighted to have you. Or you can wait for the government of Dahel to send you someone else to take your place as ambassador, or maybe some other official who thinks he comes as your husband, and who will no doubt be shocked to hear that he is not recognised as your husband until he has won your heart and your entirely free-will decision to marry him. You can accept the attentions of the ambassador of Tesk, but Esme thinks he is not looking for a wife, but a play-thing, in which case he would not stay ambassador for long, and nor would you. Or, you can ask Esme to write a message to the government of Dahel saying that she is sad that with the loss of your husband they've left you so unsupported, and would it not be more fitting for the ambassador of such a great empire to have a full staff of adequate assistants, oh, and that she'd take a very dim view to hear that you might be replaced.”

“And how would I send such a message?” Esme asked.

“Well, assuming we can get the peace treaty agreed soon, our joint ambassador could take it of course, Esme. Properly supported by some of your finest soldiers and conveyed by one or two of those nice fast warships that your father's convinced us to build, of course. Travel time ought to be about a four or five weeks if they're as good as Albatross. Your uncle's plan almost demands Dahel's involvement, doesn't it?”

“Ambassador Hayeel,” Esme said, formally, “I'm still getting to know Hal, since he only rescued me from where my brother held me captive yesterday. Every so often he surprises me. Excuse me while I respond.” And saying that she grabbed Hal by the head and pulled him into a fierce kiss. [You genius.]

“Is such a clear sign of affection normal, highness?” Hayeel asked.

“No, it's absolutely shocking behaviour. Especially for a princess, and especially since our countries are still officially at war. But Hal has just solved a several problems with one stroke and I want to encourage him to keep on being such a genius. Tell me, lady Ambassador, do you expect your soldiers progress home will be faster or slower than their way here?”

“The mountain passes are dangerous in winter. The officers did not wish to delay because of the chances of an early snow in the mountains. I heard some of the rank and file recommending a particular village as a good resting place having stayed there previously. So it is possible that the soldiers made faster time to beat the snow, or it is possible that they were stopped in the mountains.”

“These are the mountains within Dahel?” Hal asked.

“Between outlying provinces and the central region, yes.”

“Why don't you use ships?” Esme asked.

“They tend to sink without notice at sea,” Hayeel replied, “and there are pirates.”

Hal nodded. “I've heard that Dahel ships are designed for rivers, not the sea, Esme, they probably would sink in any interesting weather.”

“And the pirates?”

“From what I've heard, their pirates tend to rely on stealth and night attacks. They're mostly 'innocent fishermen' by daytime. I doubt they'd attack a warship.”

“What do you mean by a 'warship'?” Hayeel asked.

“Did you ever see your father's ship?”

“It looked very different to the ones of Dahel. People said it was top-heavy, and he was brave to go to sea in it.”

“Did it have small windows along the side?”

“Three or four. For the cannons, he said.”

“Yes. A warship swaps cargo for cannonballs and powder, and ten to twenty cannons each side, plus smaller guns to shoot at small boats.”

“So many guns! You could destroy a town with such!”

“It has been threatened, but never happened,” Esme said. “Ten years ago, Tew was attacking Caneth, and King Val kindly sent ten warships to help them realise that sending their entire army here was foolish. It was only a recently emptied fort that was turned to rubble, not an entire town. I have the feeling that's when our fathers started plotting our future together, Hal.”

“Probably,” Hal agreed.

“I do not understand why there is this talk of war when your countries are allies.”

“We have long been allies,” Esme said, “but sometimes politics becomes problematic. Serious and frankly credible accusations were made that demanded action. The accusations have been proven false and unfounded, and everyone breathes a sigh of relief, or at least, they will once the announcement is made.”

“What's the delay?” Hayeel asked.

“For some reason that I'm not entirely sure of, probably tradition, I can't call a special meeting of ministers to declare peace when there's another meeting scheduled that day, and for another unknown reason, meetings of ministers except at times of crisis need to happen at three o'clock. Declaring peace is not a time of crisis, and nor are the conditions that the negotiator for the Three Isles has decided to impose on me.”

“You suggested half of those, Esme!” Hal protested.

“And?”

“And they were very good suggestions, I just hope your father agrees.”

“He's sick, and it's not his wedding.”

“Not to mention your ministers.”

“I'll tell them that it's going to happen that way or I'm eloping,” Esme threatened.

“You're shocking our hostess,” Hal pointed out.

“I know. Honourable lady ambassador, I hope you will eventually forgive me for shocking you twice or perhaps more. I understand how honour is important for you, and that you feel that without conscious effort and formality, honour is lost. Here, attitudes are different. What you have witnessed, we call banter, and idle threats. I am a little nervous of this meeting of ministers, as it will be the first that I have attended. They are a group of honourable men and one woman who have known me since I was a stubborn child. Perhaps they still think of me as a stubborn child. So, here, with the man I will marry and a woman who has trusted me with what I am sure is not something she shares publicly, I allow myself to be a bit silly, and think of threats that I could make that would make this meeting I am both nervous about and impatient for into a crisis meeting. I do this in part to reassure you of my sincerity when I say that I expect you at the palace this evening. The ambassador of Tesk, as I say, will not be present. In part, that is because there are things he will want to discuss, some things that he knows, and you do not, and he might be upset about. I expect him to be concerned about them. You are full of curiosity, and that is good. If you come this evening, when you come, I will tell you, and you can put it in your report to your government.”

“A family evening with the regent of Caneth... I am deeply honoured, highness.”

“I imagine that things are more complex in Dahel?” Hal asked.

“If you truly send ambassadors, then they should not expect to meet the emperor in the first five years. Perhaps after three years they will meet the grand-vizier, but I would be surprised.”

“Will your report be believed?” Hal asked.

“If it is, then it will be understood as a sign that you are truly a barbarian people.”

“Peoples, please,” Hal said. “If you were at Father's court he'd probably have asked you to sing a song or tell a story by now.”

“The Three Isles are not as formal as we are in Caneth,” Esme said, “But ambassador Hagberry has never reported being asked to sing.”

“No, I don't think he ever has. Do you play chess, honourable Lady Ambassador?”

“Not very well.”

“That's probably a good thing. After Princess Regent Esmetherelda has let you into the little secret, I will be extending an invitation to the royal court of the Three Isles at Captita, and you will be pleased to accept it, I think. It will give you many insights into things your government should be aware of for the future, and such insights are best gathered and recorded before you become too used to our strange ways.”

“But.. I am not full ambassador!”

“You are the only ambassador we have until the snow melts in your mountain passes, I expect,” Esme said. “You have said as much.”

“Even if your assistant or replacement-husband or replacement is sent so that they can get past the inner mountains before winter, they will not pass the outer mountains, will they? So unless they enjoy risks, they will be unable to get here until two months after the avalanche risk has ended, or at the earliest a month sooner than you arrived, am I not right?”

“You are, highness,” Hayeel replied, amazed that he knew so much about the geography of her country.

“If, however,” Hal continued, “we can send a fast ship around the coast before the winter storms start in earnest, which shouldn't be hard at all, then there is time for your reports to be delivered, and perhaps even policies to be changed and new orders to come for both you and whoever is on their way. Which might be a bit upsetting for them, but they won't let on, I'm sure.”

“Prince Hal will now explain to us both how he knows about the geography of Dahel,” Esme predicted.

“Oh, that's easy, I sailed that way the year before last and picked up some maps from a trader at Wahleet.”

“Wahleet. You have truly visited Wahleet?”

“The painted harbour is quite impressive. I'm not sure I could describe the colour though. Sort of somewhere between green and pink.”

“Those are opposites, Hal,” Esme said.

“Not in Wahleet, highness. There is a rock which is ground up and used for paint. In some lights it is pink in others green. The trader was on the foreign pier?”

“Yes, a small office, just next to the customs house.”

“I do not know if I can believe this! It is not possible, surely?”

“He was an older man with a young wife. She seemed very happy and was singing to her unborn child an old song from Tesk. A relative?”

“My sister. You invited them onto your ship.”

“Yes.”

“And told her about the song.”

“Of course. She didn't understand it all.” He stood up, “Will you come with us, lady Ambassador?”

“Where to?”

“To meet someone who knows someone you know. I think you don't need us to recommend someone for you to hire. And Esme will forgive you for not visiting tonight, won't you Esme?” Hal said.

“Of course I will,” Esme smiled.

“There's a friend of my sister here? Here?”

“Well, down near the port. You get all sorts of people finding a way to earn a living near to ports. Exotic cooking is a very traditional way, especially if you combine exotic with local in strange and interesting ways. Let us eat some Eels cooked Dahel-style.”

“Eels?”

“Yes. Long fish with big teeth, still available if you know who to ask, despite certain governments not wanting them to be imported because some kind of war thing.”

“Hal are you taking us to some kind of smuggler's hangout?” Esme asked.

“Absolutely not! What a thing to say. But I do want to warn you that after you've tasted eels cooked this way, you'll probably wish everyone knew the recipe.”

“I've never tasted eels in my life, as far as I know.”

“They're good, these are better. As long as you like spicy food. You do, don't you Esme?”

“Just take us there, Hal.” Esme said.

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