“Hey girl,” the woman on the screen said brightly, “did you know your transponder is down? Almost blew you right out of the water before I recognized the old bucket. That would have been awkward, especially if its automated defense systems still work.” The woman on the screen laughed heartily. “So, how’s the old lady?”

“Mother is fine.” There was a hint of ice in Tishian’s voice. Of all the fleet commanders, this was the one she liked the least. She had never really been one for respect and protocol, both of which Tishian thought critical traits in a fleet commander. “She’s napping.”

“So that‘s why you took the call so quickly. And I’m guessing she redecorated your room for you too.”

“What makes you say that?”

“You were never one for dark rooms.”

Tishian grimaced. “You know me too well.”

“Well, you know, hard not to. So tell me, you don’t call, you don’t write, does the old lady even remember she has her own personal navy any more?” Tishian didn’t bother to correct her a second time. The intent was sincere.

“There are times where I wonder. She still enjoys waxing eloquent about the days before the First Collapse, but I think everything after that is pretty much a blur to her. Yesterday she was even opining on why it is that no one has rediscovered undersea travel yet. That one caught me off guard. Suffice to say, she is acting scattered and not all that she was or should be. She still likes to believe she is immortal, but even with her, age is taking its toll.”

“Yeah,” the woman on the screen grew somber for a bit, lost in a thought.

Tishian tried to let out a long breath of annoyance and sorrow, but it came out feeling bemused. “She was telling me earlier that she was a god.”

The woman broke into a grin which faded back into the thoughts that occupied her. “In her own special way. No wyrd or occult powers like the Sisters and their kin, even if she is giving them a run for the money on the age front, no mystic martial talents like the pirates, but we both know she’s capable of things. And really, the old lady has way too many years on us. Who knows what we don’t know about her.”

Tishian quietly looked at the soft smile that mirrored her own. It was not a point she could argue. Wrapped so tightly in her mother’s world gave her no choice but to accept the truth of it.

“So, last time you were in contact, she was thinking of setting up a brothel in a mainland port town. How’d that go?”

Tishian thought about the question a bit before replying. “Yes, Farport, built right on top of the old base. And she did rather well, really. She was definitely in her medium as a social butterfly charging top dollar to cater to expensive tastes. To be honest, uncomfortably so. If you know anyone who needs to blackmail some important people in the Central Imperium, I can hook them up.” The face smirked wickedly at her, knowing full well Tishian would never tell anyone a thing. “But then she let greed get the better of her on a questionable recruitment deal and got herself implicated in some murders and attempted murders.”

Laughter erupted from the monitor. “And she went batshit and burned the place down!”

Tishian grimaced at the choice of words. “How ever did you guess?”

“Do you want the entire list?”

“No.”

The face on the monitor gave her another wicked grin.

“So what’s next for the great mistress of the seas?”

Tishian pondered how much to reveal, and decided extra eyes might outweigh privacy on this one.

“She wants revenge against the person who set her up. There was something very odd about him, but I couldn’t really say what. He was hiding behind some powerful spells that were good enough to hide themselves, at least until you acknowledged that you couldn’t see around them. Then they became very obvious, even if you still couldn’t see around them. Still, that means powerful friends.

“I am sure it is nagging at the back of mother’s mind, if not the unspoken front of it, but I don’t think she has fully embraced that she was scratched by the sharp edge of something big. From what I could gather before I had to join her in leaving the city, it probably had very little to do with her. The people involved read like a who’s who of the rich and infamous, and even in gathering that list I was only able to identify the pawns. No idea who is pulling the strings. In good news, aside from Nona, I don’t think any of the other actors even know who she is and was.”

A low whistle came from the screen. “She’s getting herself messed up with Nona again? Can’t she just let that child go?”

“I doubt it was intentional.”

“Either way. Any chance we can just toss her in a vitro tank for a century or two?”

“Which one?”

“Both!” Another hearty laugh came from the screen. Tishian allowed herself a smile. “Well, at least Nona knows enough to keep her mouth shut, though if she is involved you’ve found your ring leader.”

“Possibly, or she may have just seen the opportunity for an amusing little practical joke.”

“Right. So, you going to let her play detective?”

“Yes, it will keep her busy and I am interested in where it will lead. I don’t have any evidence that Nona has anything to do with the situation, but I don’t believe coincidences around that woman. And if she is involved, well, I owe her one.”

“You owe Nona something?”

“Yes. It involves a fist.”

“Gotcha. Where to first?”

“The base in the northern end of the Circle of Harmony. Mother seems to think there is someone near there who might have some information.”

“Right, I’ll relay that to the fleet and notify the base so they don’t shoot first, ask questions later. Anything else I need to know?”

“Yes. I had to bomb the abandoned command depot behind the old Farport base. It was at risk.”

The face in the monitor whistled softly. “The old lady is starting to rub off on you. Anything important lost?”

“Nothing that couldn’t withstand having a large city dropped on it. Let’s call it all safely and securely stowed.”

“Well then, I have some news for you. Two months ago, an experimental deep sea craft met an unexpected doom. There were signs of it being destroyed by a giant sea monster while exploring some undersea ruins.”

Tishian winced at the news. She understood why these things had to be, but she was not happy with it. “Whose was it?”

“Tubengu. It looks like they are doing more than just barely scraping by in their forgotten little empire.”