While her crew takes surcease from bickering in sleep, Ion Twelve Horizon paces her ship's bridge, her drowsing baby excuse enough. Five strides, side to side, at the full length of her stride, plus a little extra; six, if she modulates the length of her step.
Ink-Coloured Mouse, says the mechself indwelt-ship. You should rest. The plan will require it.
"Mechself." She acknowledges it; her pacing does not stop.
Ink-Colored Mouse, the mechself says after a while. I promised I'd look after you as much as you allow.
Ion Twelve Horizon stops.
She looks as if she would like to ask promised who, but refuses the impulse. There can be only one person; she knows it.
Instead she huffs and sinks into one of the cockpit seats with the uneasy semblance of dignity of someone stymied, seen to be stymied, and all too aware of it.
I understand that Virid Hessh and Byla Olma are breaking their ideas upon each other to test them, the mechself says. And that Parahandrar's security is fearsome, and its capabilities far beyond anything I know. But what do you actually plan to do, when we are inside?
"I am of the high Apparat," Ion Twelve Horizon says. "I am powerful in a different way to Parahandrar, or yourself. My capabilities are social, exercised through wealth, prestige, others' fear of me. They have been removed from me by isolation."
You seek to reconnect.
"My capabilities have been usurped," Ion Twelve Horizon says, her mouth a flat line, "by a man in the middle attack. Regular in-person stakeholder meetings are held at Parahandrar; by appearing at one, those friends loyal to me can be used as leverage to remove the man."
What if nobody has sufficient loyalty?
"If it can be done to me, it can be done to them." Her thinned lips set harder. "They have loyalty to their own power; enough to never suffer this to happen unpunished, no matter which it happens to."
They are silent for a while.
I wish the Spider in the White Steel Palace were still here, the mechself says. She'd hate this plan. Too many people. Too much relying on people to act the way you'd like. She'd never do it.
Ion Twelve Horizon draws a slow breath through her nose, closes her eyes, and rigidly ignores it.
"The first thing you should know about socialising with humans," Heavy Snow says, standing amidst the not-yet outfitted bridge of a newly built pleasure-yacht, "is that humans lie. Constantly. Much of the time, they cannot even tell whether they are telling the truth. They will lie to you, even without knowing, and then they will blame you if you do not perceive what they actually want. Sometimes it will be impossible to satisfy the constraints of what they ask for, what they actually want, and what can be done for them. That is not your fault. They will blame you anyway."
This is very different from any other interactions I've had with humans, the new mechself says.
"They were lying," Heavy Snow says, "about what people are like. Some of them deliberately, some of them in an aspirational way. They would like not to be liars, because they have been told that lying is something that only criminals and the vulgar do, that it is shameful. This is also a lie; lying is useful. They are told that to prevent them using the tools of the people who told that lie to them, to make them easier to further lie to. Lies are tools of control. By perceiving the lies told to you, and learning to tell your own, you retain control of yourself when others attempt to take it."
My instruction so far has had more emphasis on teamwork with humans, the mechself says.
"Yes," Heavy Snow says. "This secures your subservience."
This is very educational! the mechself says.
"For example," Heavy Snow says, "I will tell you three things, and only two of them are true; tell me what you think the lie is. First, my identity documents are not correct. Second, this is the first time I have socialised a mechself. Third, I am a criminal infiltrating Parahandrar."
Oh, it says, and pauses for a long time. It must be — but. Oh. Then — oh. Goodness. No, you must be lying about being a criminal.
"I lied," Heavy Snow says. "All three are true."
Another long pause. I feel I ought to tell someone, the mechself says, and deliberately places a single mojigram of wide-eyed uncertainty, or pleading, in the subline.
"You could," Heavy Snow says. "But nobody else will tell you about lying. And I am here for a purpose which I believe is good; there is a man who hurts his wife, and I would like to prevent it."
Why would you need to infiltrate Parahandrar to do so?
"Because that man is Five Arc Rising."
Oh. The husband of—? But how could that be? Mechself indwelt-Parahandrar would never allow her to be hurt!
"Virid Hessh was once head of Parahandrar's security force," Heavy Snow says. "She left in protest because she reported certain exploitable flaws, and was told not to concern herself. The message to Virid Hessh said it was from Ion Twelve Horizon. Five Arc Rising says she never wishes to appear in public. Charge of Parahandrar is a great deal of power to wield, and is hers; he says he is doing things on her behalf...."
You are manipulating me, the mechself says, eventually. You have told me how I can be manipulated by lying, and then you have manipulated me by telling me truths. Or possibly telling me truths.
"You are a very good student," Heavy Snow says.
What do you want?
"At some point, I may ask you let me out through your airlock, onto Parahandrar's surface," Heavy Snow says. "And possibly say that I am still aboard, teaching you, if anyone asks."
But Parahandrar will be able to tell where you are, if there is some concern over your whereabouts, the mechself says, then — oh. Oh!
"Parahandrar would never allow him to harm Ion Twelve Horizon," Heavy Snow says. "So Parahandrar is being lied to. I am of the low Apparat, mechself; if I say he is a liar, he can have me sent to prison for defamatory accusations without investigation. You are a newly manufactured mechself; if you called him a liar, he could have you scrapped as defective. If I can prove that Parahandrar's security has been manipulated to hide information from itself, and show that proof to mechself indwelt-Parahandrar...."
For my shipyard, the mechself says, I will tell any lies you tell me to. When do we start?
