“It was,” Jorgen said. “But the ship didn’t make it back from Starsight. We can’t use that trick anymore.”
Another broken branch.
“What are you hoping to gain from an alliance with us?” FM asked.
I set my shoulders. This was the opening Finis had taught me to look for. A direct inquiry to my intentions, an invitation to announce what I needed. Time to get to the point, to beg them to send a military force back with me. Quilan wanted to capture me first, but he wouldn’t wait forever before he transported the rest of the resistance to the Superiority. I didn’t know what they would do with us.
I also didn’t want to find out.
“Your people know very little about cytonics,” I said. “I don’t know everything, but I could offer more instruction than you have now. As for what I need—the Superiority already believes that my people are working with yours, because Spensa was discovered to be a human disguised as an UrDail. They’ve demanded we turn in our human co-conspirators, but of course we have none, so instead our government wants to turn me and other resistance members over to them instead.”
“They’re going to turn over their cytonics to the Superiority?” FM asked. “That seems unwise.”
“They’ve already captured our faction’s High Chancellor, who champions independence for ReDawn. By turning him over to the Superiority, those who seek unification will find themselves unopposed.”
“They’re trying to use the Superiority to take out their political enemies,” Jorgen said. “Because that can’t go wrong.”
FM shook her head. “Two birds with one stone, the saying goes.”
The pin didn’t have a direct translation for that first part. “What’s a bird?” I asked.
“A flying animal,” FM said. “We don’t really have them anymore. They were a thing from Earth. You don’t have birds on ReDawn?”
“We don’t have creatures that fly,” I said. “Anything that strays too far from the trees without an atmospheric generator will choke on the miasma.”
Both Jorgen and FM blinked at me.
They clearly had no idea what I was talking about, but it was also beside the point. “As for what I hope to gain, I’m hoping that your people would be willing to help me defend mine against the Superiority.”
“We can’t promise you anything,” Jorgen said. “But if you’ll come with us to talk to our admiral—”
“Is this the woman who tried to interrogate me?” I asked. “I’d hoped to avoid involving her.”
“You’ve met Admiral Cobb, but he didn’t get to say much,” FM said. “He’s…much more reasonable than Jeshua Weight, the woman you ran from. But yes, she will probably be there, especially if you want to meet with Minister Cuna.”
I doubted Jeshua Weight was going to want to work with me. I knew her type—always reaching for power, never wanting to extend any in return. “And if your leaders refuse an alliance?” I asked.
Jorgen and FM exchanged another look. “There’s nothing we can do for you without their permission. That’s not the way it works here.”
“Here!” chimed the red slug on Jorgen’s shoulder.
“Not now, Boomslug,” Jorgen said.
“Boomslug!” sang both yellow slugs, and they hyperjumped onto Jorgen’s shoulders with the red slug. All three slid off and rolled onto the ground at his feet.
The pin translated “Boomslug” to mean a mollusk that explodes.
That was ominous.
Jorgen shook his head. “We really need to get them to only do that when they’re given the code word.”
“Rig and I are working on it,” FM said. “But I think they like each other more than they like caviar, so it’s slow going.”
I had no idea what that meant, but I didn’t think these two were going to help me unless I spoke to their leaders. At least this time I was in a better position. They knew I wasn’t their prisoner, and an alliance would be advantageous to us all.
I’d come this far. I wasn’t going to go home without trying everything.
“All right,” I said. “I will speak with your admiral.”
“Good,” Jorgen said. “I really think we can all benefit from working together. I could use some coaching in cytonics, if you haven’t noticed.”
“I noticed,” I said. All cytonics had slightly different capabilities, but I could show him the basics at least. At some point, we all had to figure out the nuances of our powers on our own.