Book 3 - Ceremony Read Online Free PDF Page B

You’re talking about diverting energies from
your project. Which means having to stretch it out a
little.”
    Marika sighed. “Yes, I guess I am.”
    “You see? One thing affects another.”
    “We’ll do what we have to. Are you ready to face
Kiljar and Bel-Keneke? And beyond them, a convention of all the
Communities?”
    “I believe so.”
    “Good. Because Kiljar is failing and I believe that to
have a chance the thing has to get rolling before she
dies.”
    “Arrange for me to see her. I’ll sell
her.”
    “Just give her the truth. Let it argue for itself. You
cannot mislead her. And she’ll have to sell it to others on
its provable merit.”
    “Of course. That’s understood. Did you happen to
notice that I flew down here in a Sting? We haven’t flown
together for a long time.”
    “I did notice that. And I was thinking of stealing you and
it if you didn’t come up with the suggestion
yourself.”
    “This afternoon, then? After I have seen the most
seniors?”
    “Yes. Don’t let them intimidate you. They may try,
just to see what you’re made of.”
    “Those old artfs? Not likely. Not when I have to deal with
my factors and bond masters every day.”
     
    Bel-Keneke and Kiljar needed very little convincing. They had
done their own investigating. “I am amazed,” Kiljar
admitted. “The response among the Communities has been almost
messianic in intensity. They believe you are going to show them the
pathway into a new age, Marika.”
    “It must be timing,” Bagnel remarked. “Purely
a matter of timing. Everyone is just frightened enough, just
certain enough. Ten years ago no one would have taken the project
seriously. Conservative elements would have killed it. But now the
world is in desperate need of a hope, and this one fills the need.
I find extremes of enthusiasm everywhere within the brethren. All
the factors and masters, once they examined the data, showed
uncharacteristic excitement. Even some who were very suspicious
before. It has softened the appeal of the rogues tremendously.
There have been almost no incidents at all this past
month.”
    Bel-Keneke added, “I have consulted a number of senior
sisters from a number of orders. My experience has been the same
everywhere. Tremendous enthusiasm, discovering a hope where none
was thought to exist, except in that the dark-faring sisterhoods
might have established a few feeble colonies upon the starworlds.
How long the enthusiasm will persist I cannot tell. Seldom has any
meth devoted herself to a project for as long as this will
require.”
    “There will be problems,” Marika agreed. “The
project will hurt some orders more than others. It will draw
attention and energy away from the starworlds. None of those
sisterhoods will be pleased by that. I do have a suggestion, though
it may not prove popular.”
    “Yes?” Kiljar inquired.
    “We could survey all the sisterhoods, including those
without rights in the void. Then conscript every sister capable of
serving aboard a darkship out there. We could even retrain some of
the strongest bath as Mistresses for workships. We would then have
to depend less heavily on those sisters normally preoccupied with
the starworlds. Too, we will have to lift the ban on the
brethren so they can participate as fully as possible. That is an
absolute necessity. We will get nowhere without them because of the
traditional silth resistance to becoming involved in physical
labor. Also, ships of the sort that were associated with
Starstalker
before she vanished would be valuable if we
could build them. That would ease our dependence upon a very small
supply of void-capable Mistresses of the Ship.”
    Bagnel said, “We should be able to develop construction
ships. I have suggested that it be given some thought. I doubt that
anything we came up with would be as good as those rogue vessels,
but because some saw them we know what has to be done. There are
problems, though, Marika. Fuels. Energy. We’re right down