“I’m not being left behind,” Nova said, setting Risor aside. Before standing up, she took Risor’s hands in hers. “I’ll be back, okay? But I need to help Miran because he’s a little dumb.”
Risor’s eyes went wide at the word “dumb,” then she giggled. “Dumb?”
Nova nodded with a grin. “Will you look after everyone for me while I’m gone?”
Risor sat up straight and nodded. “Yes. I looks.”
Nova gave her a quick kiss on the forehead, then stood up and sprinted after Miran. If this was about the Diniki, then they needed her, even if they didn’t realize it.
She might not know anything about gardening, but she knew a lot about the Diniki!
***
Miran
Command was a hive of activity. There was a warrior at every workstation, and more standing at displays set in the wall. Warik and Nisha were already there standing with Section Commander Belor talking intensely.
He didn’t know how much help he could be, but seeing the startlingly smart Nisha and clever Warik made him feel better. His job was to back up what they came up with, not to suggest a plan of his own.
No sooner did he feel relieved than a small body slammed into his back. Turning, he found Nova picking herself up from the floor.
“You weren’t supposed to stop so suddenly,” she grumbled.
Honestly, he wasn’t surprised she’d followed him. He thought she’d want to stay with the children, but she would also want to help protect them.
“Sorry, I’ll make sure to warn you next time,” he teased, grabbing her in a quick hug before turning them both to join the small group.
Nisha was quick to point at Nova. “You need to talk to her, Section Commander Belor. She was the one who knew what to say to the Diniki. My program only translated her words.”
Section Commander Belor didn’t hesitate to explain the issue. “The Diniki running Tulsin I are demanding more bribes from us, but every time we try to transfer the credits, they refuse them. They’ve launched their military, and more is on the way. I don’t want to go to war, but they’re making it impossible to find another way for us to leave.”
Nova nodded her head. “Tell me exactly what everyone has said so far.”
“I can do better,” a nearby warrior said and pointed to his console. They gathered around, and he queued all the exchanges, flipping through them slowly so Nova had plenty of time to read. Thankfully, they were all in Space Standard.
It was easy to see where the Hissa had gone wrong. It was the same issue Warik and Nisha were having before the Ardent arrived.
The Diniki wanted to be bribed, but it had to be done in a way that wasn’t an obvious bribe. The Hissa didn’t care about paying people off, but they didn’t want to play political games. They wanted to transfer credits and be done with it. The way they spoke to the Dinikis in charge made it impossible for the Dinikis to accept without looking guilty.
They were all bribable, but it was important they didn’t seem like they were being bribed.
“This is really bad,” Nova said after reading the last exchange. “I need to meet with them. Calming them down is going to be a delicate process.”
“No,” Section Commander Belor said without hesitation. “I can’t risk having you off this ship if we end up at war. There’s already a plan in place to separate the Assist and have it towed away with a gunship escort while the Ardent holds back the Diniki military. I can’t do that if you’re not here.”
“If you let me go, there won’t be a battle,” she argued.
“Tell us what to say,” Miran said. “Our envoy can handle the Diniki.”
She pointed to the past exchanges between the Ardent and Tulsin I. “Obviously not. Let me meet with them, soothe hurt feelings, and work out an agreement. Then we can all leave safely without any more threats.”
Belor scowled. “I won’t let them capture you. Having you as a hostage would only make this worse.”
Miran agreed. The thought of Nova traveling to meet a group of Diniki, even if she had a squadron of warriors to protect her, made his blood run cold.
“Please, Nova,” he said, taking one of her hands in his. “Don’t ask us to put you in danger.”
She made a frustrated sound. “If you guys go to war, we’ll all be in danger. I’m telling you, I can fix this.”
