The final notes of Pratallix's 12th Concerto for Kalushtra hung in the air, like fine crystal, before the audience broke into thunderous applause. Farrah Farruhz, the celebrated virtuoso, stood up from her instrument and fluttered her white-feathered wings, acknowledging the 15,000 aliens who had gathered into the Galos City Centennial Concert Hall to hear her play. The audience began standing, or hovering, each giving Farruhz their equivalent of a standing ovation. The slender Swantahl fluttered her wings again before striding off, leaving her instrument standing alone in the middle of the stage.
"I understand she used to be a Guild courtesan," Tal Jin leaned over to whisper in Desirée Tanner's ear, one of his twelve tentacles brushing her bare arm. "With the Fenar III House, I recall."
Desirée grinned. "You must have read the program notes, too." Veronica Franco's borrowed earrings dangled against Desirée's slender neck, brushing the wisps of her sandy blonde hair, now carefully plaited into a formal style against her subdued, elegant makeup. Even though she was on paid vacation, she wore a long, low-cut gown in the Guild colours of red and gold. "Professor Ssurhuk-T'at once told me that her manual dexterity had always been . . . most impressive."
"His pause, or yours?" he teased gently.
Her lips brushed his hearing slit. "His, actually." He shivered appreciatively.
The audience was still enthusiastically applauding according. Desirée knew there would be no encore; Farruhz never gave one.
"Intriguing. Ah, I see they're bringing the house lights up," the young Tekkamaru diplomat said. "Would you like to accompany me somewhere for a light refreshment?"
"I would love to," she said, turning towards the end of her row. She could feel the speculative eyes upon her as she did so. Despite Guild courtesans being a common sight on Galos IV, it was still cause for comment to see a junior courtesan in the stalls of the Concert Hall, especially accompanying a non-Guild member.
Desirée ignored the covert scrutiny; Tal Jin was not in his yearly heat so he wasn't calling on her professional skills. He simply had a pair of tickets for the concert and asked her to join him for the evening. Desirée, who considered the Tekkamaru a good friend, was more than happy to do so.
"Do you have a place in mind, or would you like me to make some suggestions?" she asked. "I know a number of good restaurants here in town."
"I'm certain you do," Jin said dryly. Not all guests wanted to be entertained in the Guild House. He followed her towards the exits, wearing the black and gold uniform of the Diplomatic Corps. "Nevertheless, I know a place we can go. It would be my treat."
* **
"You never told me why you came all the way to Galos IV just for a single concert." Desirée stirred her tarliss. It was the closest equivalent she could find to a latte, although it had more of a chocolate almond taste. The restaurant was quiet and intimate with soft lighting; although Desirée had never been there before, it was high on her list of recommended nightspots on Galos IV. "I'm flattered of course, but it's quite a long way from the Kahlis System, even to hear Farrah Farruhz play."
Jin's expression didn't change: he casually activated the privacy screen before taking another sip of his firdrakh tea. "Ambassador Sukohl paid for both my flight and the concert. I'm being kept out of the way," he replied once the screen was up. The disruptor field, regularly found on tables in more upscale restaurants, disrupted any electronic devices and made it impossible for outside observers to read lips or other speaking appendages.
Desirée blinked. "Why?"
He grimaced, red flashes appearing on his pink skin. "The ambassador handed me these tickets, just as we were about to begin another round of negotiations. Very generous of him, but it's clear he doesn't want my input on the discussions. The situation is deteriorating rapidly on Kahlis IX, and the good Ambassador," Jin's face was carefully neutral again, "feels my views are far too aggressive for his taste."
She cocked her head. "What's been happening?"
"General Xerkis is becoming more and more erratic, and his demands of the Verlit Oligarchy to hand over the dissident Xital, and his claims against the Confederation itself, are becoming more aggressive," the Tekkamaru diplomat said. "My sources also tell me he's regularly using Fikhylthan."
Desirée sucked in a breath. Fikhylthan was a highly addictive derivative of the Fikhyl plant, found only in the Kahlis System. Much like cocaine on Earth, it gave the user a short, powerful burst of euphoria but addicts displayed erratic, aggressive behaviour and paranoia. If Kalhis IX's dictator was a Fikhylthan addict, that meant an already volatile region of space was becoming even more dangerous.
Jin nodded. "I have reason to believe the Kahlisians are becoming increasingly angry with his administration, but Xerkis still has control of the army. As long as that situation continues, then there is little anyone can do to dislodge him from power. Unfortunately, he still has ambitions outside of the Kahlis System. The Confederation has repeatedly censured him in Parliament but there's still a deadlock as to how to proceed against him. So, we do nothing, except condemn his actions in Parliament and send him warnings."
She winced at the acid tone in his voice. Jin's belief was that several fleets of Confederation warships running exercises in the Kahlis system would swiftly show Xerkis the error of his ways, but the diplomat's immediate superior didn't share that view. But, if Jin's information was correct, any prior predictions about Xerkis' behaviour just went straight out the airlock.
A single tone emitted from their table, a request for them to drop their disruptor screen. After a quick glance at Desirée, Jin killed the field.
"Excuse me, sir and madam," the robotic voice of the table said. "I have a Priority One message for Guild Courtesan Desirée Tanner from Guild Administrator Veronica Franco. Will you accept the message?"
"Yes," Desirée said. "I accept." An image of Franco appeared in Desirée's eyeballs, through her UTD. The message was barely 30 standard seconds old. The Guild administrator wore her gray suit, and she appeared the worse for wear. It clearly had been a long and difficult day for the slender, curly-haired brunette.
"I'm sorry to disturb you on your week off, darling," the recorded message began, "but I have an urgent request and I'm finding myself short on available courtesans. There's no need to return immediately, but can you help? Please call me as soon as you get this. Franco out."
Desirée checked her chronometer. It was already well into night; Veronica should have been in bed long ago. She turned off the message and turned back to her date for the evening.
"Duty calls?" he smiled to take any possible sting from his words.
She grimaced. "Not quite, but I have to make a quick call. Do you mind?"
"Not at all."
Smiling at him, Desirée activated the disruptor screen so it only shielded herself. That done, she placed a call to her boss.
Veronica accepted it immediately. "Thank you for getting back to me so quickly, dear. How was the concert?"
"Wonderful," Desirée smiled back. "How can I help?"
"There's no need for you to return immediately," Veronica said quickly, "but I just received an urgent communiqué. There's a group of guests arriving tomorrow, and they've requested our services on an important matter. I can't give you any further details but discretion is of the highest priority."
