8th February
22:18 GMT
and
back in, surprised Spider Guild members scuttling back nervously. I'm on an… Open-plan bridge, on a space station of some kind. From the rough-hewn walls I'm going to assume that they built it into an asteroid. Not a
normal Guild practice, but I suppose that they did rather have to hit the ground running with regard to their treaty refit commitments.
"At-will teleportation?" Fhomalhopos steps off his dais, though given how Guilders move it looks more like he's flowing. "Is that new, Orange Lantern?"
"I've learned it since I last left Vega. How have you been doing?
"
He makes a rasping-sigh noise. "Busy dealing with the constant nagging of our new partners. I decided to rush our first dock rather than build the entire generation in a more efficient manner in order to satisfy them. Dealing with inefficient alien egotists isn't something I thought would be part of my job… But as the Queen commands."
"No big problems?
"
"We're making ships and guns for people I instinctively believe should be our enemies. Beyond that, nothing worth talking about."
"So if I took a look in your refrigerators..?
"
"The meat would genetically match various people, but it's all cloned from tissue samples. It is no longer practical for us to kill intelligent prey."
I shake my head.
"Why..? Did you do it in the first place?
"
"I'm not sure." He comes level with me and stops. "A combination of our distant ancestors' primary source of food also being intelligent and thus us never really developing an instinctive aversion to the practice, and the social conditioning of growing up in a society where such things are normal. Of course, we are having to cut down on the usual manifestations of our dietary habits now. It will be interesting to see whether they survive more familiar contact with other species."
He turns his head around to take in his subordinates and makes a rasping-click noise. Slightly crouched in shame, they return to their work stations.
"What can we do for you?"
"I'm checking up on you. And I want to speak to the Queen.
"
"She is.. not directly involved in this work. I will be happy to show you anything you like." He gestures to the doors. "We have even modified former holding pens into places for humanoid entertainment."
"The two requests weren't dependent. I want to speak to her regardless of what I find here.
"
"She cannot presently leave her current environment. Is your environmental shield sterile?"
"Yes.
"
"Then you will be able to visit her." He flows past me and heads for the door out of the room. "Would you like to interview our current guests?"
I look around, staring through the rock and metal surrounding us. Guilders are distinct enough from humanoids that I can tell the difference easily enough. Ring?
Scans are unimpeded. Multiple members of local irregular groups present. None significantly injured or in distress.
Which matches with what… I'm… Seeing…
I tilt my head slightly at-. Really? I mean, consenting adult sophonts in private, but
really?
"No, that's… Fine. Are you having any trouble with the other Guild Nests?
"
"Some have made representations. Offers of aid in exchange for our virtual enslavement. We have passed on all so far."
He accelerates and I float behind him as we pass through another door and down a corridor.
"Strand-Captain, if there are any problems emerging, it would behoove you to make me aware of them
now, while I can still do something about them.
"
"Oh?" Three eyes rotate my way. "You didn't say that you were acting as a guarantor for our agreement. Has something happened?"
"The karnans are in the process of reconquering Karna.
"
"Yes?"
"As you may remember, I dislike pointless slaughter.
"
"What I heard from Amalak's people about your treatment of the last Citadelians suggests that your dislike is not universal."
"No, it's just not overwhelming. For example, if you'd told me that you were eating slaves, I would have overcome it.
"
"It would be impractical to get enough." A couple more of his eyes focus on me. "And impolitic, given that they would be the same species as our business partners."
"I suppose that's an adequate reason.
"
He enters a code to open the door, granting us access to a short section of corridor to the next door. They're both reinforced, designed to form seals in the event that part of the station becomes decompressed. The door we just passed closes firmly before the next one begins opening. The wall on the far side is transparent, giving anyone looking a clear view of a
colossal space within the asteroid.
Fhomalhopos scuttles out and gestures towards the scene on the far side. There are eight ships of various classes and in various states of assembly parked around the edge of the interior space, work crews of Guilders and robotic drones visible all around. Using them to judge scale… Not
huge ships, but certainly not tiny.
"We're working on the ships of some of the more
vocal officers here. Small ships will be serviced in more conventional space docks. Commodore Amalak is 'giving' us some of his older ships to allow us to accelerate our dock-building program."
"Thoughtful.
"
"I thought that it was admirably rational, given that we would primarily be using them for
him. Would you like to see them?"
"And there weren't any explosives or monitoring devices in them?
"
"Bombs, no. Monitoring devices, yes. We left them in place. We would not be so foolish as to do anything we wished to keep concealed where they could easily see it, and their presence may reassure him."
"And
are you doing anything you wish to keep concealed?
"
He wiggles his mandibles.
"Strand-Captain Fhomalhopos, I want this region
peaceful. I'm not exactly going to be impressed-.
"
"We do not plan to initiate martially aggressive action. It would be foolish of us to do so. If you wish to know more about our plans, you will have to speak to the Queen."
"That's something
else I want to ask you about. Why do you even
have a Queen? Shouldn't the title be Guildmaster or 'Hive Father' or 'Hive Mother'?
"
His eyes wheel in all directions. Discomfort and embarrassment. "Those who would have ruled this Nest were killed in transit. We do not believe that the people who killed them even realised who they had killed. The Queen took over organising us after that point."
"Alright, but what
is she? I know perfectly well that female Spider Guilders don't usually look like that.
"
"
That is something which you will have to ask her as well. I-." He touches his collar for a moment. "Ah. It seems that she is ready to receive you."
