powerful Hegemon, what will the I.F. do?"
"What did Suriyawong do when Achilles ordered him to
kill you?"
"Gave him a knife and told him to defend himself."
Bean nodded. "But will the I.F. obey you? If you're counting on the
reputation of Mazer Rackham, remember that hardly anybody knows you're
alive."
"I'm counting on the I.F. living up to the code of
honor that every soldier has drummed into him from the start. No interference
on Earth."
"Even as you break that code yourself."
"We're not interfering," said Rackham. "Not
with troops or ships. Just a little information here and there. A dollop of
money. And a little, tiny bit of recruitment. Help us, Bean. While you're still
on Earth. The minute you're ready to go, we'll send you, no delays. But while
you're here..."
"What if I don't believe Peter's as decent a man as you
think he is?"
"He's better than Achilles."
"So was Augustus," said Bean. "But he laid
the foundation for Nero and Caligula."
"He laid a foundation that survived Caligula and Nero
and lasted for a millennium and a half, in one form or another."
"And you think that's Peter?"
"We do," said Rackham. "I do."
"As long as you understand that Peter won't do a thing
I say, won't listen to me or anyone, and will go on making idiotic mistakes
that I can't prevent, then ... yes. I'll help him, as much as he'll let
me."
"That's all we ask."
"But I'll still give my first priority to finding my
children."
"How about this," said Rackham. "How about if
we tell you where Volescu is?"
"You know?"
"He's in one of our safe houses," said Rackham.
"He accepted the protection of the I.F.?"
"He thinks it's part of Achilles's old network."
"Is it?"
"Somebody had to take over his assets."
"Somebody could only do that if they knew where his
assets were."
"Who do you think maintains all the communications
satellites?" asked Rackham.
"So the I.F. is spying on Earth."
"Just as a mother spies on her children at play in the
yard."
"Good to know you're looking out for us, Mummy."
Rackham leaned forward. "Bean, we make our plans, but
we know we might fail. Ultimately, it all comes down to this. We've seen human
beings at their best, and we think our species is worth saving."
"Even if you have to have the help of non-humans like
me."
"Bean, when I spoke of human beings at their best, whom
do you think I was talking about?"
"Ender Wiggin," said Bean.
"And Julian Delphiki," said Rackham. "The
other little boy we trusted to save the world."
Bean shook his head and stood up. "Not so little
now," said Bean. "And dying. But I'll take your offer because it
gives me a hope for my little family. And apart from that, I have no hope at
all. Tell me where Volescu is, and I'll go see him."
"You'll have to secure him yourself," said
Rackham. "We can't have I.F. agents involved."
"Give me the address and I'll do the rest."
Bean ducked again to leave the room. And he was trembling as
he walked through the park, back toward his office in the Hegemony compound.
Huge armies prepared to clash, in a struggle for supremacy. And off to one
side, not even on the surface of Earth, there were a handful of men who
intended to turn those armies to their own purposes.
They were Archimedes, preparing to move the Earth because
they finally had a lever big enough.
I'm the lever.
And I'm not as big us they think I am. Not as big as I seem.
It can't be done.
Yet it might just be worth doing.
So I'll let them use me to try to pry the world of men loose
from its age-old path of competition and war.
And I'll use them to try to save my life and the lives of my
children who share my disease.
And the chance of both projects succeeding is so slim that
the odds are much better of the Earth being hit by a disastrously huge meteor
first.
Then again, they probably already have a plan to deal with a
meteor strike. They probably have a plan for everything. Even a plan they can
turn to if ... when ... I fail.
5
SHIVA
From:
"What did Suriyawong do when Achilles ordered him to
kill you?"
"Gave him a knife and told him to defend himself."
Bean nodded. "But will the I.F. obey you? If you're counting on the
reputation of Mazer Rackham, remember that hardly anybody knows you're
alive."
"I'm counting on the I.F. living up to the code of
honor that every soldier has drummed into him from the start. No interference
on Earth."
"Even as you break that code yourself."
"We're not interfering," said Rackham. "Not
with troops or ships. Just a little information here and there. A dollop of
money. And a little, tiny bit of recruitment. Help us, Bean. While you're still
on Earth. The minute you're ready to go, we'll send you, no delays. But while
you're here..."
"What if I don't believe Peter's as decent a man as you
think he is?"
"He's better than Achilles."
"So was Augustus," said Bean. "But he laid
the foundation for Nero and Caligula."
"He laid a foundation that survived Caligula and Nero
and lasted for a millennium and a half, in one form or another."
"And you think that's Peter?"
"We do," said Rackham. "I do."
"As long as you understand that Peter won't do a thing
I say, won't listen to me or anyone, and will go on making idiotic mistakes
that I can't prevent, then ... yes. I'll help him, as much as he'll let
me."
"That's all we ask."
"But I'll still give my first priority to finding my
children."
"How about this," said Rackham. "How about if
we tell you where Volescu is?"
"You know?"
"He's in one of our safe houses," said Rackham.
"He accepted the protection of the I.F.?"
"He thinks it's part of Achilles's old network."
"Is it?"
"Somebody had to take over his assets."
"Somebody could only do that if they knew where his
assets were."
"Who do you think maintains all the communications
satellites?" asked Rackham.
"So the I.F. is spying on Earth."
"Just as a mother spies on her children at play in the
yard."
"Good to know you're looking out for us, Mummy."
Rackham leaned forward. "Bean, we make our plans, but
we know we might fail. Ultimately, it all comes down to this. We've seen human
beings at their best, and we think our species is worth saving."
"Even if you have to have the help of non-humans like
me."
"Bean, when I spoke of human beings at their best, whom
do you think I was talking about?"
"Ender Wiggin," said Bean.
"And Julian Delphiki," said Rackham. "The
other little boy we trusted to save the world."
Bean shook his head and stood up. "Not so little
now," said Bean. "And dying. But I'll take your offer because it
gives me a hope for my little family. And apart from that, I have no hope at
all. Tell me where Volescu is, and I'll go see him."
"You'll have to secure him yourself," said
Rackham. "We can't have I.F. agents involved."
"Give me the address and I'll do the rest."
Bean ducked again to leave the room. And he was trembling as
he walked through the park, back toward his office in the Hegemony compound.
Huge armies prepared to clash, in a struggle for supremacy. And off to one
side, not even on the surface of Earth, there were a handful of men who
intended to turn those armies to their own purposes.
They were Archimedes, preparing to move the Earth because
they finally had a lever big enough.
I'm the lever.
And I'm not as big us they think I am. Not as big as I seem.
It can't be done.
Yet it might just be worth doing.
So I'll let them use me to try to pry the world of men loose
from its age-old path of competition and war.
And I'll use them to try to save my life and the lives of my
children who share my disease.
And the chance of both projects succeeding is so slim that
the odds are much better of the Earth being hit by a disastrously huge meteor
first.
Then again, they probably already have a plan to deal with a
meteor strike. They probably have a plan for everything. Even a plan they can
turn to if ... when ... I fail.
5
SHIVA
From:
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