Free Rebellion by William H Keith

grunt and stiff nod. Imperial daihyos, or representatives, commanded fantastic authority, speaking for the Emperor and reporting personally to him. This man, Dev realized, was why that Imperial destroyer was docked at Shippurport. It must be Omigato’s personal transport.
    “And this, Lieutenant,” Prem continued, indicating the Guard officer at Omigato’s side, “is Taisa Emilio Duarte, commander of the 4th Terran Rangers. He will be both your commander and your escort while you are here on Eridu.”
    Dev glanced at the collar devices and rows of ribbons on the man’s uniform as he bowed. The man was strider-trained. Two battle ribbons and a Medal of Valor, eighth dan. The scarlet Shishino Chi, the Lion’s Blood, indicating a serious wound in the line of duty. A blue-and-white Alyan Expeditionary Force ribbon; he’d been to the DalRiss worlds, too.
    Duarte seemed to sense Dev’s question. “You are right,” he said, smiling. “I was at Alya A. Aboard the Saiwai Maru. But we stayed with Yamagata at ShraRish while you were doing your thing with General Howard over at GhegnuRish.” He grinned. “Some guys get all the luck, eh?”
    Omigato scowled, and Dev had the feeling he disapproved of Duarte’s manner… or perhaps he didn’t like the public airing of the near split in the command of the Imperial Expeditionary Force. Admiral Yamagata, Dev remembered, had very nearly removed Howard from command over the issue of using gaijin troops at the DalRiss home systems.
    “We should concern ourselves with more immediate problems,” the daihyo said, speaking Nihongo. “I am concerned with this entire plan to communicate with the Xenophobe enemy. Perhaps we should discuss our strategy should the honorable Cameron’s attempt fail.”
    Now there was a cheerful thought. If he failed to communicate with the Xenos, it was quite likely that he would be dead.
    “You are speaking of the nuclear option, of course,” Prem said.
    “A number of ground-penetrating nuclear charges were brought here aboard the Tokitukaze,” Omigato said. “We will release them for deployment as necessary. The Imperial Marines already on Eridu will take charge of the operation.”
    “I take it you’re not too hot on the idea of talking peace with the Xenos,” Duarte said in Inglic.
    Omigato appeared to understand him, even though he replied in Nihongo. “The plan is foolhardy and can confer no advantage to us. How could we sense whether or not such alien creatures are lying? Simpler to destroy the threat once and for all.”
    “If we could talk to them, my Lord, it would make terraforming this world a hell of a lot easier,” Dev pointed out. “They could do the job for you.”
    That idea had been discussed before, once it had been learned that a Xeno world mind could nanotechnically alter the chemistry of a planet’s atmosphere. Some day perhaps, Xenos and humans could form a symbiotic partnership, taming worlds together for the benefit of both species. Exchanges with the Alya B World Mind had hinted that such cooperation might well be possible.
    Only a few people within Imperial or Hegemony command circles shared that vision so far, however, and Omigato clearly was not one of them. “Baka mitai!” The blunt phrase, meaning roughly “That’s stupid,” was deliberately rude. “They are aliens!”
    Dev blinked, startled. Omigato had called the Xenophobes gaijin, literally “outsiders,” a word that could mean aliens or foreigners. The same word was used to refer to anyone who wasn’t Japanese. It was strange, Dev thought, to be verbally lumped with the Xenos.
    Did Omigato think of everyone who wasn’t Japanese—human and nonhuman alike—as the same, as a foreigner, not to be trusted? An interesting question. It was possible, Dev thought, that language shaped a culture’s point of view at least as much as the other way around.
    “I return to the Tokitukaze,” Omigato said abruptly. “You will, of course, keep me informed of