Then you understand what he has been ordered to do?
More or less.
Can you please explain it to me? No, not the reasoning behind thatbelieve that given the events of this past week, I understand the reasons perfectly. I dont, however, understand exactly why this task was given to Rennick. I do not understand how what he produceswhich by Imperial mandate must be untruewill serve the goal of educating the public, as Mr. Rennick calls people.
Had this been a normal day, Kaylins head would have hurt. And since misery loves company, she said, Maybe we should answer this question while Rennick is actually there.
All in all, not her brightest suggestion.
She was escortedhaving been parted from Ellis with gods only knew what difficultyby Ybelline into the main hall whose chief decoration was a large table, with simple chairs, and the occasional flower in a bowl or a vase to add any color that wasnt provided by faces.
Rennick in particular was an odd shade of gray. He was separated from the rest of the Thaalani by Severn, and if the seating arrangement was accidental, Kaylin would have eaten her hat. Or her hairpin, given she didnt own a hat. There were only five other Thaalani in the room, all in robes very similar to Ybellines, which, given the heat and the humidity of the season, made sense.
Sense and clothing seldom went together, in Kaylins experience, and she didnt recall seeing robes like this the last couple of times shed braved the Quarter, so she assumed they were some sort of formal dress. Whether or not this assumption was right, the dress seemed to be accepted wear for both the three men and the two women. The colors of the dress were basically the samea creamy gold that was almost white. The shoulders had different embroidery at the height of the seam, which mightalthough she doubted it, given the Thaalanibe some sort of symbol for their rank.
Rennick rose when she entered the room. He was quiet, but not for lack of trying; if shed seen a better imitation of a fish out of water, she couldnt offhand recall it.
At ease, she told him. When this comment appeared to make no sense to himand given Severns expression, it wouldntshe said, Sit down.
He sat. Are you sure you shouldnt be the one sitting?
I slept.
For three hours, he added.
She could have told him that three hours after a day like this was a catnap, but didnt. I think we have the worst of the difficulties facing the Quarter from the inside in hand, she told him instead. The difficulties facing the Quarter from the other side of the guardhouse, not so much. Youve been talking to the Thaalani for the last three hourswhat have they told you?
Nothing.
She looked across to Severn. He shrugged. Rennick thought it was relevant to ask them everything they knew about you, he replied.
Oh. They dont know much.
She called you here to help, and they dont know much? He didnt trouble to keep the scorn from his voice, but on the other hand, no scorn would probably be no voice, for Rennick.
They dont know much they want to share at any rate, she told him. And Im not your job. They are. You saw the casualties, she added.
He nodded, wincing slightly. Theyre all going to survive. One of the men got up and walked away.
He was probably less injured than he looked.
Private Neya?
Yes?
Learn to lie better. Or dont bother. Bad lies insult the intelligence of the listener, and I believe that you dont want to insult me.
This wasnt exactly true, but Kaylin was too tired to start a fruitless argument, which was generally when she started them. Humans almost killed those men, she told him, meeting and holding his gaze. Humans saved them. Were done with that now. Move on.
And where, exactly, would you like me to move?
To the part where you stop humans from wanting to kill any of the Thaalani ever again. We brought you here because we thought youd see a bit more of what the Thaalani are like. Today wasnt their usual day, so thats a wash. But none of them want to hurt you and they certainly dont want to read your mind.
They just want to be left alone. They tried to save the city, and were going to make sure that people understand that.
One of the Thaalani men in the room stood. It is to address this concern that we are here, he said, in stilted Elantran. He didnt bow to her, which was good. But there is some concern.
Were here to address those concerns, she said, wearing her best Hawks face although her head really was throbbing. Humans have stories. Those stories arent like the Thaalaan, she added softly. Theyre not real stories. People dont experience them as memories, and they certainly dont live them the way some people can live old memories in the Thaalaan.
These stories, are they true?
Kaylin looked to Severn for help. As a rule, she didnt ask for rescue, having learned early that it was pointless. But when it came to people, Severn was just better. He always had been.
Ybelline, however, lifted a hand. Scoros, she said, sit. The stories that she speaks of are not true in the sense that our stories are true. They change with time, they change with the teller of the tale.
He frowned.
Scoros, Ybelline added to Kaylin, is a teacher. He teaches the Thaalanari, and he is respected. He understands what they will face.
Kaylin nodded.
It is however very seldom that my kin are exposed to your stories, and some explanation will be required.
Severn shrugged again. You were always better at creating stories than I was, he told her.
But not better at lying.
No. This however is yours.
She pressed her palms into her closed eyes for a minute. Then she nodded.
Understand, she said, addressing all of the Thaalani present, that humans dont have the Thaalaan. We dont have access to perfect memories. I cant remember clearly what I was doing eight years agobut if you wanted to, you could. I can construct what I was probably doing eight years ago. And if it was utterly necessary, I could ask Ybelline to actually sort through my memories and tell me what I was doingbut without the help of the Thaalani, if my twelve-year-old self wasnt doing something in easy reach of Records, theres no way for me to be certain.
Scoros nodded; clearly this was nothing new to him.
This is especially true of people who have had no sleep for a few years.
Scoros frowned and Ybelline said, She is not being literal.
His frown deepened slightly, and then eased. Ybelline was speaking Elantran for their benefit, but, clearly, was speaking in other ways as well.
The oldest of our stories are probably religious stories, Kaylin continued. Stories about the gods.
These are the ones you remember?
Me? Not exactly. When I say oldest, I mean, the oldest ones that anyone knows about. She winced and gave up. The earliest stories were told, were told as children, usually by our parents, sometimes by our friends. Children dont always have enough experience to understand very, very complicated things, and stories are a way of explaining the world to them.
But theyre not true.
Well, not exactly.
We do not understand what you are explaining, then.
Scoros looked at Ybelline. Ybelline looked at Kaylin. Kaylin looked at the tabletop.
And Rennick stood up with a disgusted snort.
Rennick, sit down, Kaylin told him.
Rennick didnt appear to hear her. Given the color he was turning, it might not have been an act.
Castelord, he said, managing somehow to be polite and icy at the same time. Do you have no art, here?
She frowned. Art?
Paintings. Sculptures. Tapestries. Art.
We have, Scoros answered. His voice had dropped a few degrees as well.
If what Ive heard today is true, the Thaalani have perfect memory. Anything, at any time, that any of you have experienced, you can recall. True?
Rennick
No, Private. If I am to do my job, as you so quaintly call it, I need to understand what Im working with, or working against. You arent even asking the right questions.
Rennick
Kaylin, no, Severn said, his quiet voice still audible over the echoes of Rennicks much louder tirade. Hes right. My apologies for the interruption, Mr. Rennick. Please continue.
Is it true?
Scoros was silent for a moment. Kaylin imagined that he was trying to figure out what Rennicks game was. She could sympathize. It is as you say, Scoros said.
What is the purpose of your art?
Pardon?
Why do you make it? The sculptures? The paintings? The tapestries?
What does this have to do with your stories?
Everything.
I am not an artist, Scoros replied. But I will attempt to answer. We create these things because they are beautiful.
Beautiful? More beautiful than life? More beautiful than whats real?
Scoross silence was longer and quieter. When he spoke again, the chill in the words was gone. Yes. And no. They are not the same. The tail end of what might have been a question colored the last word.
But you could find beautiful things, surely, in thewhat did you call it? The Thaalaan?
Yes. That is what it is called.
Can you?
Yes. But it is not a simple matter of demanding beauty and having it surrendered to us. We are not the same person. No two of us think exactly the same way, although to the deaf
Scoros, Ybelline said softly.
To the humans, Scoros corrected himself. To your kin, we might seem thus. We do not have the range of differences. Even so, some memories will strike different Thaalani as beautiful but not all.
Yes, well. You can find beauty, but you choose to create it instead?
Some of my kin do so, yes.
Imagine, for a moment, what it is like to be my kin.
Rennick
Scoros, however, stood. The two men faced each other across the length of the table. Severn kicked Kaylin under the same table, motioning for silence.
He doesnt understand what theyve suffered, she hissed.
Then allow Scoros to make that clear, if that is their wish.
Scoross antennae were weaving frantically in the air, and Ybellines were doing a similar dance. But watching the two, Kaylin could see the differences in their gestures, these antennae that had seemed so much like a threat. Ybellines movements were graceful and exact, as if each rise and fall of stalk was perfectly timed and deliberate. Scoross looked like whips.
Two conversations. Two arguments.
Scoros turned to Rennick. I spend little time imagining anything else, he told the playwright. Ice was gone; fire was present. He was angry. My jobmy dutyis to prepare our young for life in your world. And it is a life that they are not suited to live. They do not lie, they do not fear, they do not hoard. Nor do they steal or kill.
Imagine what it is like to be you? What is it, exactly, that you do that allows you to come here and speak thus to us? You create thesethese liesand you spread them. And you are proud of this. Do you think we want to serve
Scoros. If Kaylin had ever wondered whether or not Ybellines kindness was based in strength, she had her answer. There was steel there.
What do you value? Scoros snapped, retreating from the previous sentence as if it were death. Gold. Precious gems. Fine cloththings. How do you reassure yourself of your own worth? By soliciting the admiration of people who value only that much. You spoke of love, in your travesty ofofdisinformation. What do you know about love? Your love is little better than base greed and insecurity! You want the regard of your peers, but you allow none to be peers. You want impossible, stupid things.
You kill each other, rape each other, steal from each otherhow are you to speak our truths? How are you to decide what beauty means?
Because it doesnt matter what it means to you, or your kin. It only matters what it means to mine. Rennick folded his arms across his chest. He appeared to be entirely unfazed by the fury that he had provoked. Kaylin, head pounding, couldnt say the same. I dont demand that you like us. I dont care if you respect us. He shrugged. You wouldnt be the first race to look down on us, you certainly wont be the last.
And you interrupted me, he added quietly.
Scoross eyes rounded. He was actually shocked.
So, clearly youve thought about some of what it means to be us. Let me direct your thoughts to other aspects. You speak of fearhow do you recognize it if you dont feel it yourself?
A fair question, Scoros, Ybelline said pointedly. Please answer it.
We understand fear, he replied stiffly. Nothing that lives is without fear. We fear for our sick, when the doctors have done all they can. We fear for our children. We fear
Do you fear death?
No. Pain, perhaps, but not death.
Do you fear to be forgotten?
We will never be forgotten, while even one of us lives.
Rennick lifted a hand. And the rest?
The rest?
Greed. What you call human love. You dont feel it?
Weve all felt greed, was the equally stiff reply. We were all children once.
And love?
We do not mean the same thing by that word.
Very well. Speak of your meaning, mine is no longer an issue here.
Scoross antennae waved again in the air, and Ybellines snapped back.
Grudging every word, and speaking in the stilted way of Thaalani who are using language they are not familiar with, Scoros said. It is joy, to us.
And what do you love?
My people. Our children, he added. Their lives. Our parents. Our siblings. Our husbands, if we have them, or our wives, if we have them.
Plural?
No one person can be all things to all people. Some have tried, and some trybut it is youthful, and experience teaches much.
I see. Rennick was silent for a moment, gathering his thoughts. Kaylin highly doubted that he would stay that way, but she was fascinated in spite of herself. She was also grateful, because if there was a diplomatic incident today, it wouldnt be her fault.
Imagine lives without that love, Rennick finally said. It was not what she expected. Without the certainty of kin. We create art, and not all of it is beautiful to all peoplebut you have said that this is true of your kin as well.