Recovery Mission 875-496

[flykiller]

14 degree axial tilt, north in summer. 81% surface water, 19% surface land, ice caps, well within water habitable zone, good albedo, an almost ideal range of human-habitable temperatures, moon low and fast, heavy tides and obvious geological activity. Two lumpy continents colliding against some kind of obstructions, long and high mountain ranges, island chains, several active volcanoes, it looked like God had dragged his finger across the planet like a child might plow up some mud from a puddle. Slightly heavy atmophere, O2 at 20%. O2 ranges always seemed to stabilize near that value, Adam supposed Helga could explain why. The storms would be real killers, all that ocean over which to build up and then dump their load of water, he could see two hurricanes, one in each hemisphere, playing out, have to avoid them and keep an eye on any new storms that developed.

He drifted the maneuver drive and set orbit right over the middle of the primary continent. Two mountain ranges, high and continuous in the north and moderate and broken in the south, ran the entire length of the land, enclosing a vast plain with a river running east to west down the middle, fed regularly by tributaries along its entire length. Even from up orbit it was readily visible, it must be huge. The flora ranged from high temperate scrub along the mountains to temperate rain forest north of the river, and rampant jungle to the south all the way to the mountains again. Clouds pushed in from the western sea, piling up against the peaks and dropping their load of water and snow.

No-one said anything. Adam had a slight smile.

They drifted endlessly east over the river. Hills, lakes, endless forest. To the south they passed the large bay at which lived the few humans in this world. Adam lined up the nav scope and looked along its coast and shore waters, then put the scope away. Helga looked at him. "Haze," Adam reported.

"What ... is ... that?" Natasha pointed.

A portion of the forest had been cleared, in a sort of rain drop pattern, with the trailing edge only lightly disturbed and growing more empty until reaching a head perhaps a dozen kilometers in diameter that seemed to be bare dirt.

"Meteor strike?" offered Laseiag.

"No," answered Helga, pointing further on, "another is there." This one seemed older, re-filling with forest, but even so the curve in its path was obvious. "Not meteor."

Natasha looked at Adam. He shrugged. "Every ecosystem is different."

The forest was breaking up, giving way to mixed hills and grasslands. From the marks on the terrain it was clear that very large herds roamed here, and it seemed some were large enough to be visible even from their height.

The river continued on into higher lands. Adam pointed at it and looked to Helga. "Third largest in Spinward Marches sector," she said. "Only," he grinned in awe.

Further to the east was a volcano, moderately active, producing a thin column of smoke that dissipated into the vast ocean that could be seen through the final gap in the mountains.

A light shifted on Natasha's panel. She played with her settings for a moment. "I have a signal," she announced.

"Well that was quick," murmered Adam. "Purdue?"

"It is unusually weak but it is transmitting on the right frequency." She transferred the data to Adam's panel. "There." Well away from the inhabited bay, in a transition region between the plains and an eastern forested area.

Helga glanced at the data. "Correct choice of landing zone."

"OK, let's drop in for a visit," Adam announced. "Chief Laseiag I'll try to go straight in but I may hover to look around and get Helga's input and track for Natasha, so please be ready aft." The man nodded and slid out the bridge. "Helga do you want to watch from here or on your display in your cabin?"

"Here."

"OK." He keyed engineering on internal. Chief Laseiag, down on 50."

"At station," Laseiag sang out.

Adam rolled the Flower to take advantage of what aerodynamics it had and spiraled down toward the signal coordinate, lightly applying the gravitic maneuver drive. The ship wafted on the increasing air resistance and he corrected for the west to east prevailing wind. Adam preferred space-going ships but he could see why some pilots preferred aircraft, interacting with the atmosphere was physically exciting. The horizon slowly rose and pulled in as the world approached.

A flock of avians was crossing underneath them. Adam drifted to one side to avoid it. A great mass of animals, mostly blue with flashing white wings, long tails. A contingent broke away from the mass and circled Flower's vector as it passed them by, then they continued on with the flock. Helga switched on an external speaker system and piped it to the ship's intercomm system. The avians were chirping and popping to each other.

She watched them through a pair of binocculars. "Monkey birds," she said.

"It is landing beacon identifying as ISS Purdue," Natasha announced.

A hilly region, a flat within it, above the surrounding countryside. Yep, perfect spot for a landing. He eased the approach to full maneuver support and circled the area. No ship obviously visible. Trees, grasses, definitely terran, a few odd ... biological structures? ... on the slopes. He couldn't identify them, and he had to watch his engineering readings and gage the terrain itself.

"Can anyone see the beacon? I don't want to land on it," Adam called.

"No," called Helga, scanning with her binocculars. "Ach, very large animal to north."

"Hazardous?"

"Unknown. Yes."

"Beacon is here," Natasha called, passing the trianglulation data to his panel's display of the terrain.

He scanned engineering readings and the location, and picked a spot. "OK, we're putting down, head's up aliens," Adam said. He wheeled the Flower around over the spot, heeled up, and eased down carefully, trying to feel the ground underneath the ship. Satisfied at how it felt, he set down fully and realigned the maneuver drive to full neutral. "Chief Laseiag let's leave the plant on-line for now."

"Five minutes to full recovery," Laseiag responded.

"OK," Adam replied. "Flower, outhull safety protocols."

"Outhull safety protocols enacted," the machine responded.

"Alright Helga, where's our friend?"

"There," she said handing the binocculars to him.

He focused on the animal. It was quite a distance from the landing but definitely had noticed the Flower. Gray, stumpy legs, a big Y-shaped horn on its massive face, it was the size of a ground vehicle. "What is that?"

"I have no data," she happily replied. A new item for her inventory.

"Well let's make sure we don't collect any data on how hard it hits with that horn," he grinned. He started to say something to Natasha but stopped. Her eyes were wide, looking around at the countryside rolling off into the distance. The groundside view from the high flat was awesome and clearly it was having an effect on her. "Here," he said, handing over the binocculars. It seemed she had never used the tool before but knew what to do, and she started scanning the landscape.

Adam keyed engineering to include Laseiag. "Helga, do a baseline atmo survey and we'll pop the hatch. Natasha and I will find the beacon, you can do what you want but stay close, no bike yet, bring your weapon. Chief Laseiag please bring your shotgun and stand overwatch on the hull for us for now. Everybody grab your comm links."

Helga moved off.

"That hill is full of animals," Natasha announced. It startled Adam - she sounded unconfident.

He took the binocculars and looked where she pointed. A large dirt mound, perforated by burrows. A large number of little heads poked out, beady eyes staring at the Flower. The mound looked artificial.

"Some kind of plains animal," he told her. "Looks like they build their home as an observation platform, so they can see farther. It's unlikely they're any kind of hunter." She seemed unreassured. "C'mon, link up, let's go find out what's going on with the Purdue beacon." Big bad city tough girl in the wilderness.

In his cabin he belted on his revolver. Low power rounds up, a reloader full of heavy. He charged up the other reloader with the laser pop rounds, just in case. Join the scouts, visit alien worlds, try not to kill everything ....

"Atmosphere acceptable with no observed hazards," Helga reported.

Adam stepped out in front of Laseiag. He was carrying his shotgun safely and casually, as if he were setting out for a day's hunting. "OK, Natasha out front, pop the hatch and lead us out," Adam called.

She looked nervous - Adam smiled - but she pushed past Helga into the airlock. He could hear her cycle the pressure relief, everyone's ears popped slightly, and she opened the upper airlock exit and climbed slowly up. Helga was right behind her, and Adam moved up behind her.

He never got used to it. The sun, the moving air on his eyes, the far-away sounds, the smells, the horizon. Not virtual, not through a glass. Real. Garden of Eden.

Always trying to get back in.

 

[flykiller]

He stood on the hull, doing his usual slow full circle of the horizon. The air smelled good, slightly damp, a heavy rainstorm to the north dipping below the horizon, rising hills all the way to meet the clouds, high mountain peaks looking above the curve of the world. The wind pulled at his clothes, other than that there was almost no sound. The local moon was in view to the south, he could almost see it moving. Not cold, a few hours to sunset.

Oh yeah.

This is not Eden.

Close enough.

Helga was taking in the sights as well, alternating between looking at the immediate surroundings and through her binoculars, occasionally making an entry in her data pad. Laseiag cradled his gun in his arms and surveyed the scene calmly, upright, proudly, his eyes seeming to look beyond the horizon as if recalling empire - he seemed a living stone memorial, a piece of the past. Natasha was standing still, hair in the wind, arms around herself, clearly nervous. He stepped over to her and looked where she was looking. It was the mountain mole things, they were all staring at her.

Adam raised his hand to them. "We come in peace!"

One of them chirped and they all disappeared into their castle. "They don't believe me. But they like you," he told Natasha. Her eyes narrowed.

No Purdue.

He could see where it, or something, had landed at one time. Grasses and weeds, or whatever they were, were filling in the ship's full-body footprint on the terrain, but the impression remained readily visible. Gone for a while now. He scanned the terrain a little more objectively. Mostly terran flora, imported at some time, along with some obvious native ground ... growth.

"Helga?"

"No inobvious hazards reported previously and none are in view," she answered. "I believe we are safe for now. Except for him." She pointed to the huge gray quadruped beast. It was staring at them from a good distance, but there was no telling how fast it could run. It had tiny eyes, and the wind was blowing from him to them, so it would have only a limited basis for any decision it came to. Usually in something so large that meant default attack, but for now it was just standing there.

"Hey! Take us to your leader!" Adam called. It didn't move. "I guess he's the leader. OK Natasha, where's the transmitter, I don't see it."

"There," she pointed, towards a copse of ... some kind of trees, all with spiky crowns bowed in different directions. "Helga what are those?"

"Worship trees. Ambulatory vegetation."

Natasha turned to her. "What?"

"The tops are seed pods. As pod develops the trunk bows down and plants the seed pod. The other trunk end detaches from previous planting and elevates to grow new seed pod and repeat process. The trunk ambulates across terrain planting pods."

Adam stared at the "trees". "Symbiants?"

"I have no data. Very possible."

"But ... they are clumped up here. And there. And there are none standing alone." Natasha pointed.

"Yes. They require more study."

"OK, Natasha, let's go look. Chief Laseiag, cover us."

Laseiag pointed at the huge animal with his shotgun. "This weapon is inadequate for that creature."

"Yeah, just ... cover us, OK?" Adam swung himself onto the hull-flush ladder and slipped down. He put his foot carefully on the dirt, it was compacted and firm, and he stepped off the ladder onto the landscape. A little dry but not dusty, good conditions. Natasha stepped off carefully, looking around, then seemed to gather herself up. "There," she pointed. Helga followed them down and continued to examine the terrain, comparing what she observed with what was displayed in her data pad.

Adam and Natasha approached the worship trees. Long stalks of sinuous longitudinal fibres, bush-like structure at the bottom, another one developing up top. He touched a trunk. It would make good building material, if he could cut it. He looked around. Yep, there's the beacon, tipped over and stuck between the plants, it's solar cell not aligned correctly.

Adam pulled it out and stood it up. "ISS Purdue" was stenciled on one side.

"Well, they were here, and they're still here, somewhere," Adam said, "I guess. But I don't know why they'd leave this just standing in this location."

"They have survey robot," Natasha said. "That is why they leave beacon here, for point of reference."

"Can you find the bot?"

"I can scan for it, yes, but I cannot say if that will locate it."

"If we set this back up, would the bot come here?"

She shrugged. "I do not know."

"Well, worth a try." He stood the beacon upright and realigned its solar cell. Then he strode over to where the Purdue had landed. The sign in the dirt and vegetation was unmistakeable, typical S-class outline, but while he couldn't read the native vegetation properly the mixed terran vegetation was well recovered. "Been a while."

"You can tell how long?"

"I'm not a tracker but I can recognize short time and long time." He gazed around as if expecting to see the Purdue flying up. "Well wherever they are they've been there a while, and we got no signal on the way in, so either their ship is destroyed or they're dead I'm guessing," Adam said unhappily.

"You give up already?" Natasha asked suspiciously.

"No. We'll just have to search manually, that's all, and I'm hoping Helga there," he pointed to her as she was recording a video of a set of "flowers", "can narrow our search a bit."

"I can," Helga called without looking up.

"Good."

Narrow it how much?

"We have some time, so make it a good list of places," he added pleasantly.

"Yes."

"Will that be a problem," Natasha asked uncertainly, pointing up at the sky.

Adam looked up. A weather system was developing, rapidly, dark clouds moving in. "No, just some rain." She cocked her head looking at it. Adam was surprised. "You've never seen rain?"

"I have not."

"Well. Now you will. Might even be a thunderstorm."

At that moment an avian landed in one of the worship tree seed pod tops. Natasha stepped back involuntarily, watching it warily. Adam couldn't help but watch Natasha first, then he faced the animal. It was what Helga had called a monkey bird, and the name fit. All feathers and limbs, bright blue dorsal and white ventral coloration, a face with a strong beak, and narrow hands on its wings, it swung around on the tree like a simian and shaking out its wings. It pulled something organic from out between the spikes and bit pieces off, looking at Natasha, it's thin tail curled over its head like a question mark. Natasha seemed fascinated, and took a step towards it. The monkey bird however didn't seem to think much of her and threw its food in her general direction. She looked incredulous for a moment, then stepped casually over to the tossed item, studying it. The monkey bird watched her, curious. She picked it up, seemed to inspect it, then suddenly threw it at the monkey bird with such economy of motion she surprised the animal entirely and hit it. The creature popped angrily and flew away, rattling its feathers.

Adam laughed. "We came in peace but it looks like you started a war. And without the Emperor's permission."

Laseiag suddenly called out, "The gray animal is approaching."

"Up! Now!" Adam directed Natasha to the ladder. "Helga!"

"Ja!"

"Very fast!" Laseiag called with alarm.

Helga beat Natasha to the ladder and gracefully mounted to the top as if gravity-assisted. Natasha was quick but deliberate and Adam pushed right up behind her very close and personal, and she was annoyed, but the look vanished from her face as the animal rounded the bow in a great thundering cloud of dirt and headed for them. She bounded up like an angel and Adam hurled himself rolling onto the roof of the ship.

It was huge. Its legs were like piers, its skin was like imperial marine battledress armor, its head like an ancient battering ram. It considered them with beady eyes, then swung its Y horn against the Maus's hull. It was immediately apparent that it could not damage the ship with the horn, but it then turned its butt to the hull, reared forward, and kicked with its hind feet. It was a tremendous blow, and while the ship did not rock Adam could feel the hit through the thick steel all too well.

"OK enough of this!" Adam stood up, unholstered his revolver, and stepped to the rolling edge of the roof, making sure he had a leg back so he didn't stupidly fall off. "Hey! Knock it off!" Loud command voice. He fired a round into the air.

At first nothing happened. The animal just stood there. Laseiag and Natasha and Helga joined him at the edge, peeking down at the huge mass of flesh. Helga was recording the scene with her data pad.

"Oh let me guess, I scared it and now it's going to keel over dead," Adam muttered.

The animal didn't die. Instead it suddenly expelled a great rushing gout of urine onto the Maus hull, followed by a horrifically voluminous fountain of colorful feces. The entire lower half of the ladder was mucked over out of sight and a vast steaming pond of hellish goo collected at its base.

Adam was completely stunned and just stood there with his mouth open, his revolver pointed in the air. Natasha was beyond stunned, she had no idea how to react. Helga began to giggle, then laughed uproariously, then collapsed onto the roof pounding it with a fist and unable to speak.

Laseiag seemed calm. Adam faced him, mouth still open. Laseiag glanced at him. "Our empire was vast. This is nothing new." Adam blinked. Laseiag added, "But never I have seen this myself." As Laseiag turned away Adam could tell he was beginning to laugh.

Welcome to Eden.

 

[Hyphen]

Really enjoying this. When's the novel due out? ;-)

 

[flykiller]

The weatherfront moved in as the local star set behind it. The rain wasn't heavy enough to wash away the beast's expulsion but was merely pleasant. Lightning fell in the hills to the north, sometimes emitting rolling thunder. The beast stood nearby, steam rising from its back, seeming to listen to the thunder as if to a fellow beast. Adam sat on the bow watching the lightning and listening to the wind rushing overhead and the rain patter on his foul weather gear as the starlight and clouds mingled in the deepening twilight over the valley stretching far away below.

Through the bridge window he could see Natasha in her seat. Occasionally she would check or alter a setting on the comm systems but he could tell she mostly was watching the weather from behind her glass. The first few thunder rolls she actually had flinched. City girl. He saw Helga enter the bridge and make some adjustments to the sensor suite on his panel - he watched her closely, territorial habit - then she and Natasha spoke for a while. Helga seemed less animated than usual.

The mountain moles were bedding down for the night, safe in their castle. Adam could identify their leader by his chirp, with each crash of thunder he would sing out and all the others would answer in a rolling patter of chirps that sounded like a short symphony. The symphony got quieter and shorter each time, as if they were falling asleep.

He heard someone open the hatch behind him. Looking he saw Natasha. Well, surprise. She moved hesitantly up, onto the roof, looking somehow clumsy in her foul weather jacket and scanning the sky as if she didn't trust it. He watched her very carefully, trying to share her new-found experience.

As she turned to him he slapped the hull next to himself. She stepped over slowly, carefully looking around at the mountain moles and the beast and the lightning falling in the hills, and sat next to him as he watched her. He looked back out and waved his hand slowly over the landscape, smiling. Look upon this, could there be anything better?

Yes. You forget that.

"You join scouts for this?" she whispered.

"Oh yes. No deck, no life support, no virtual ... fake. Just the world." He held out his hand to feel the rain.

"At jump precipitation, it is so small."

"From there it's not real. It's data. Here it is real. You and it are as God intended. On Trin we remember when a man invented the first telescope and showed the church what was in the heavens. They didn't believe him and asked, 'Why would God make something that man couldn't see?'" Adam waved to the landscape again. "But He didn't." He ....

A spark of lighning flashed in the distance, and she jumped slightly. He held his hand out to her and started counting off the seconds one finger at a time. "Here, you can tell how far away it is, four seconds per kilometer, four, five, six, seven ...."

The thunder arrived, hard and rolling. The mountain mole chieftain sounded off, and a diminishing number of the others responded in their musical tones. She shuddered and looked down, pulling her gear more closely about herself.

He almost snapped at her. Back up. Back up. Back ... oh.

He waited for her.

She glanced at him and saw him staring.

"On Aki while I grow up, yasuka raids docks. In one raid port authority thinks they can corner yasuka teams. They release police robot dogs, so many of them, but programming fails or central computer loses control and they attack everybody. We all try to run but it all follows us, yasuka is setting off emp grenades but more dogs keep coming, yasuka shoots them but when dogs are too damaged to run they release wasps and that is worse. We all run to lower levels then dogs catch yasuka and start detonating. Everywhere. They burst water and drainage systems and vent structure so all security doors close, there is water falling everywhere and lower levels flood. Many people pick up equipment and try to batter down security doors, but they fail, great striking hits, I hear them shouting to get out after each strike ...."

He almost said, "This is not that." But it occurred to him that it was.

He slid closer to her and pointed to the mountain moles. "You're on Aki and not here. Listen to what they are." Another peal of thunder rolled by. The chieftain sang out again, sleepily, and was answered by only a handful of moles. "They're falling asleep. The leader is calling out, are you all in bed? And they're all answering him, yes, as long as they're awake." After a few moments another peal of thunder, softer, winding down, rolled by, and there were nothing but a few chirps. She listened very quietly.

At that moment the star eased below the cloud level and lit up the bottom of the storm front. A vast purple-pink haze competed with the gray overcast and all of the rain coming down was visible in faded rainbow sheets.

They both were looking up. After a while he was looking at her. She was beginning to comprehend what she saw.

It only lasted a moment, and then the star was below the horizon. Full darkness settled in quickly. The last act of the day was the gray beast laying down in the mud where he stood. He dropped his face with a heavy spash, emitted a vast wind-tunnel sigh, and closed his beady eyes.

There was nothing left but the sound of the rain and the wind. By the light of a few bridge indicators he could barely see her, listening.

She stood up and turned to the hatch. She reached out and touched him on the head. "I ...." She suddenly stepped to the hatch, seized the ladder, and started down. She stopped halfway, and looked him in the eye. "Thank you."

"And tomorrow might be even better."

She slid down the ladder.

He sat a little longer, listening. After a while the gray beast started to snore.

Are you still going to do this?

...

 

[flykiller]

He jerked awake. What was that? He waited, for ... something. Must have been nothing. He rolled out of bed and sat up. He had been dreaming about ... lightning? Something. He looked at his vid display, aligned to external sensors to view the anticipated starrise. Right on schedule, rolling over and lighting up the valley. Oh yeah, have to get out into that today. God bless.

If.

The internal comm system lit off. "Bridge, Chief Laseiag, was there an event?"

Adam hit a link button. "Not that I know of. But woke me up too," he bleared. He cycled the external to perimeter, nothing obvious. "Don't see anything."

"I will check engineering shortly then," Laseiag answered. Adam could hear him yawn. He delinked the comm and headed for the toilet module. Oh yeah, socks, laundry ....

Another shock reverberated through the hull. Not terrible but a good solid hit.

He burst out the toilet module and hit the internal general link. "Crew up!" He threw on flight coveralls.

Helga came back blearily, "What is event?"

"Our friend is kicking the hull again. Chief Laseiag full light-off ready to lift. Natasha?"

"Up." Lots of shuffling noises as she threw on clothes.

"Lighting off," Laseiag called.

Adam threw open his cabin door and moved straight to the bridge and buckled in, lighting off his panel, zipping up pockets and collars as he went. Everything coming up. He looked out the window, nice patchy cloudy day, everything lighting up, and the big gray beast standing by to port with his beady eyes evaluating the Flower's threat to his domain. Natasha slid in and looked out the window as well, buckling in, Helga right behind her. Helga had her data pad and was using it to align the Flower's external camera system to watch the beast.

"Can it damage hull?" Natasha asked.

"Maybe, let's not find out, line up to lift." Looking out the window again he saw the beast amble off a short distance to the worship trees.

"Is an emergency start necessary?" Laseiag asked through the internal comm panel.

Adam considered the beast. "No, I think we have a minute, normal light-off." He left the panel on speak-mode.

"Acknowledging normal light-off."

As Adam watched the beast lined up its y-horn under the top of a worship tree and popped off the seed pod smoothly and expertly. The pod landed nearby, spikes down and pod up, and the beast ambled over to chew on the pod.

"Helga what is that thing? Do you really have no data on it?"

"Previous missions make no mention of anything like this," she seemed puzzled, "and I find nothing related to it."

"It is a terran prehistoric animal," Laseiag sounded off from the internal comm panel.

"It's terran?" asked Adam dubiously. "Not like anything I saw in school."

"How come you to know this?" Helga inquired, almost officially.

"The terran population launched many colonization and terraforming expeditions into the empire, including some that involved extinct flora and fauna recovered from terra's ecosystem history. I do not know this one's name but it resembles some that I recall."

Helga cycled through her pad's data sets. "Well, this unexpected. There it is." She linked the data to the ship systems so the others could see. It was nothing more than a passing reference to and a few graphics of extinct relatives of baseline species, not even a name, but there was his lordship, y-shaped horn and all.

Natasha was astounded. "Surely dropping such large creature into previously existing life system will have unexpected results?"

"That may have been the intentional point," Laseiag answered. "They inserted a great many organisms anywhere and everywhere, often with no coordination or record. Many failed but this appears to have been fortuitously successful, at least for the terran animal."

Adam watched the beast pop off another worship tree seed pod. "Well he seems to fit right in and he thinks we don't. Everything looks up to speed from here for a lift. Helga you have a place for us to go?"

"Yes."

"Engineering concurs," Laseiag answered.

"Natasha, take us up. And don't hit the mountain moles."

Natasha aligned her panel, checked sensors for overhead clearance - good girl again - and moved to lift.

Nothing happened. Adam could feel the drives' gravitic shift, but the boat did not lift.

"High overload," Laseiag called.

"Natasha ease down. Yeah, ground's muddy, we have suction," Adam answered. Natasha looked at him, What now? "Here's what you do ...."

"Here it comes," Helga announced. The beast was galloping up to the Flower's bow. It turned around, gracefully, like a balerina, and kicked the hull with its hind feet, another solid blow. Adam felt the ship move but it seemed a little givy, did the animal kick a panel? Probably. Great.

"Spin clockwise and counter, yaw and vector zero during counter," Adam said through his teeth, hoping that the Karin yard had installed the keel skids properly and wishing he had thought to check. Natasha tried again and after some hesitation the boat lurched up and gained altitude. Well, looked like they did. The overload already was at 85%. "Gain airspeed, ease up slowly." He glanced down, the beast shook its head as if pleased with itself, and then it was falling behind and the ship was rising above the hills and plain. He watched the aerodynamic lift factors, such as they were, then looked at Natasha. She was realigning to 1G ordinary, good. "Well, I guess that's the reason the Purdue didn't stay on that spot. By the way Natasha, any signal from them? And Helga, where away? And Chief Laseiag, that last hit seemed to be on one of our panels, can you run an integrity pressure check in there?" He was looking out the window, watching the clouds come down to meet the ship.

"Integrity check in progress," Laseiag answered. Good man.

"We should start here," Helga replied, linking some coordinate data to the Flower.

"No signal," reported Natasha. "Beacon is on-line, signal strength increasing. No response to robot ping."

"OK." He looked over the site delineated by Helga. "What, middle of the forest?" Oh yeah, like to see that.

"It is one of more overgrown bare spots we observed on the way in."

"Was it bare when they were here?"

"Unknown, but is very strange landscape feature and well-worth investigating, and may be within the proper time frame."

He noticed a rainstorm nearby. "OK, next stop the deep dark forest, a bit trailing so we'll do a few other things so we don't get there before local sunrise. Chief Laseiag, test?"

"Slight leak in compartment 1A, but I believe it is watertight."

Great. Well, what's done is done. "OK, we'll check it later. Natasha, take us through the rain there, see if we can make sure our ladder and keel are washed off." She nodded and altered course to intercept. Helga lined up the sensor suite to perform a weather survey, then slid out the bridge. In a moment the clouds filled the view out the window with solid gray and the rainwater was sheening over the glass. Though she had no experience with rain Natasha clearly understood the concept, she varied the vector to generate a good water blast to the hull and slewed the approach aspect to hit port and ventral, sometimes dropping a few hundred feet on losing what little aerodynamics the ship had. The storm had some air pockets too adding to what would have been a rough ride, but the in-hull compensators corrected for the drops and the turbulence.

Natasha dialed down the bridge compensators. Adam looked at her. "So I can verify ship performance by feel," she said. "Yeah," he answered, half-smiling. Feels like flying ....

Eventually they had moved through the rain front. "OK, I'll take this while you go eat, then come back and relieve me," Adam said. "I have the conn."

Slight hesitation. "You have the conn." Adam eased above the entire front until there was nothing but bright white clouds below, distant green forest on the horizon, dark blue sky above, and the local star looking down on it all. He settled the boat into an easy wafting loop, letting Helga's program gather its data. Natasha watched the view for a while, then slipped off the bridge.

"Chief Laseiag, stable flight regime, might want to eat."

"Acknowledged."

Adam relaxed, gazing out the window, the world slowly spinning beneath him and the local star turning great circles in the sky.

 

[flykiller]

Adam wafted the ship over the terrain, the local star rising here. Passing beneath them was ever-diminishing vegetation, and approaching was a region of very little growth, almost circular and several kilometers in diameter. Outside was a sudden border of primeval forest, seemingly untouched.

"Any sign?" he asked.

Helga was in the co-pilot's seat, Natasha standing right behind her, watching the comm systems and sensor suite. "No transmissions and no sensor indications and no response to ping."

He checked his engineering reads, maneuver was stressing. "OK Helga, where do we land?"

"Here." Helga spotted a location on the ship's sensors and relayed the coordinates to Adam's panel.

"Roger that." He swung the boat around, circled to the indicated spot, a few hundred meters from the ... treeline, looks good, wait, broken partial tree trunks, settle between, engineering stress way up ease down now ... got it, zero vector to ordinary, down. The boat settled a few degrees to starboard, then stabilized. "Ladies and gentlemen another casualty-free landing, Chief Laseiag we're not likely to go anywhere for a while so let's do a standby shutdown. Everyone gear up and let's go play."

After checking that engineering was drawing down properly Adam shut down his panel and looked up. "Well ladies, shall we?"

The both were staring out the starboard window. He peeked between them, and blinked, frowning.

A tree trunk was nearby. The tree had been stripped of all bark down to the dirt line, then chewed down to a stub, the top splintered where the upper section had broken and fallen away. Adam looked around for the rest of the tree, branches, leaves, anything. Besides some new growth here and there nothing but dirt remained. Several other trunks further away showed signs of the same event. The destruction stretched away to the treeline to starboard and unrelievedly off into the distance to port.

"Uh ... Helga?"

"I have no data. Obvious ecosystem imbalance." She seemed awed.

Adam glanced from the trunk to the treeline. "Dynamically stable."

"Yes," Helga concurred.

Laseiag piped up on the ship's internal comm panel. "Shall I break out the grav bike toys?"

"Uh, let's wait on that just a minute Chief Laseiag, we'll need to check outhull first. Whatever happened here obviously it's not happening now but Natasha do a full visual 360 anyway. All hands gear up including weapons, let's do a roof exit again for an eyes-on before debarking."

Helga pushed past Natasha, who slid into the nav seat and aligned the sensor suite to landing zone and swung it around the ship. Adam watched the read-out display copied to his panel. Nothing significant - a few bugs of some kind, a small animal slithering between some trunks, some white gossamer webbing drifting in the breeze. Not much else.

"Nothing relevant," Natasha opined.

"Well then. Up we go. 'To boldly face the unknown'", Adam quoted the scout motto.

"We know it has teeth," Natasha pointed out.

Adam waved his hand dismissively. "That's a given. But your wilderness skills are developing. Good! Flower, outhull safety protocols."

"Outhull safety protocols enacted," the machine responded.

Natasha shut down her panel and they both exited the bridge. Adam donned his comm link and a duty belt with his revolver and several pouches of other gear, Natasha donned something similar. Helga had a full combat vest with her auto pistol, several reloads, and a range of equipment, while Laseiag appeared with his shotgun again and a hunting vest. Helga reported to him what they had seen out the window and he seemed to take it in stride. Adam drew his weapon, popped the hatch, listened, then eased out looking full circle as he stepped onto the hull. The rest followed.

Nothing. A solitary avian kited high overhead, a small black bug climbed on one of the devastated trees, something called lonely and solitary from far away. No obvious threat.

"OK, whatever happend here, it's gone," Adam announced, holstering his revolver. He looked down the hull ladder, noted the muck had been cleaned off by the flight through the rainstorm, and laddered down to the dirt. He stepped over to one of the tree trunks, kicking up dusty soil. The thing had been chewed alright, thoroughly, all the way around, by obvious teeth maybe a quarter of an inch wide. Some new growth was pushing up from the existing roots, sprouting wide green leaves, but the main trunk was well and truly killed. Other trunks in a similar state could be seen stretching off into the distance. No trunks or branches were laying anywhere on the ground, it was like the place had been logged by hyperactive squirrels on slow drug and then abandoned.

"OK, Helga, why are we here?" She had followed him, Natasha was standing to one side, Laseiag had remained on the ship hull.

"I estimate that this region was at max clearing at time of Purdue's arrival and that they might have examined this location. Evaluation of this new growth confirms the estimate accuracy. I believe this location is most likely for them but it could have been anywhere within a kilometer, or further."

"Well, they're not here now, and I'm not sure I'd want to take the time necessary to find their footprint in this bare dirt. Or confirm it absent. I suppose you will want to gather data here first?"

"Yes. One seldom observes a recovering ecosystem with participants functioning in isolation." She pointed at a bug struggling to climb out of the dirt and onto one of the new growth trees sprouting from an unseen root.

"Then Natasha and I will take the bikes out and scout the treeline. Chief Laseiag, if you'll pop the garage." Laseiag nodded and dropped back into the hull.

"I will call them down," said Helga.

"You'll what?"

"They are highly responsive," Helga smiled.

"I know nothing of such equipment," said Natasha.

"Is easy. I will show," Helga answered.

They strode aft of the Flower as Laseiag opened the garage hatch. Helga called up, "Extend throttle and push red button." He did, and the machines hummed to life. He delatched them, Helga whistled, and on their own they eased out of the bay and dropped down to either side of her.

"Do they have names?" Adam joked.

"Hansel und Gretel," Helga answered, completely straight-faced.

"I was ... OK," recovered Adam. "I'll take Hansel." One of the machines immediately moved up to him making itself available for mounting. Friendly thing. It had been a while since Adam had operated with responsive equipment. "Hansel, identify accerator control," Adam experimented. The machine flexed one of its handlebar controls and the machine hummed a little louder each time. "OK, identify brake." A pair of handlebar mounts flicked, the machine's hum dipping each time. Adam brightened at a thought. "Hansel, set operations level to novice." A light blinked on a suddenly evident display panel, and Adam looked it over. Operations 1. Outstanding. He looked over the rest of the display. Collision Avoidance 5. Altitude 1. Terrain Following 5. Vector Dithering 5. Other settings. A lot here. Probably should have spent more jump time looking over the user's manual.

Natasha had watched Adam carefully, obviously not familiar with responsive equipment, then repeated the same steps with Gretel. Even though it responded to her she still seemed suspicious.

"They don't detonate," Said Adam.

Helga seemed puzzled. "No, they are ... not ... explosive," she said, looking between Adam and Natasha. Natasha seemed suddenly to abandon suspicion and step up to the task. Good girl. She climbed on and felt the machine shift under her. "What is inertial loading?" she asked Helga.

"One of me, two of you, with full equipment loading, at 6G. Novice setting is 1G," Helga grinned. Laseiag had tossed down the helmets and she handed them to Adam and Natasha. Adam saw it had inherent comms and removed his, placing it in a flight suit pocket. He found the fitter and carefully slipped the helmet on, adjusting the fit drive until the internals conformed to his head. The face shield was obviously HUD.

"Heads Up."

The display appeared on his face shield. Terrain display, grav bike status, weight. Vector status was blank.

"Comms."

"Up," replied the system.

"Link ICS Dainty Flower, ID Adam Warren, link data base, link comms, inertial vector reference ICS Dainty Flower and local magnetic north, HUD ID ICS Dainty Flower and comms and Hansel und ... and Gretel."

"Linked." The system suddenly filled in the vector and displayed an outline of the Flower and the bikes and a dot for each comm link present and associated with Flower. He saw Natasha's coming up, she was unfamiliar with such tech and Helga was orienting her to the system. "I dislike helmets," he heard Natasha say. "If you fall you will be glad it is there," Helga explained like a parent. "I know," Natasha answered reluctantly.

 

[flykiller]

Adam revved up Hansel slightly and eased it forward. It responded readily but deliberately, as if he were a child. Fine with him. He brought it up to max height, four feet or so, then coasted down as he maneuvered to the Flower's port bow.

Yep, a panel was dented in. A reasonably strong design but it wasn't meant to withstand a kick by a multi-ton animal. Gaskets seemed still to be set properly but there had been a leak.

"Chief Laseiag if you get a minute check 1A here, I think integrity is OK but some of the mounting bolts look bent so if we have to fix anything in there we might need to drill out and remount the fittings."

"Acknowledged."

Natasha drifted up, getting a feel for Gretel.

"Born to be wild?", Adam grinned into his HUD at her.

"What?" Blank face plate turned towards him.

He double-checked his revolver and reloads. "Have your medical bag?"

"Yes."

"Let's go."

"You two be good and be home before dark," Helga announced.

"Yes Mrs. Braun. Hansel und ... and Gretel, give us a trail of bread crumbs so we can find our way home again." Helga laughed.

"Please restate," the helmet queried.

"Record data track and visual to ICS Dainty Flower," he updated.

"Recording."

He set out for the tree line in the distance. Natasha eased in after him. The trip required some attention constantly dodging chewed tree trunks but it was good practice for controlling the bikes and Adam took to it well. Natasha seemed to be coming up to speed too, though after a while she figured out how to slave Gretel to Hansel's path letting her focus on cycling through the bike's sensor capabilities, entering instructions manually and verbally.

The destruction became less total as they approached the treeline. The trunks were less chewed and broken, some were even alive and re-growing, and branches littered the ground. Even so the treeline was fairly distinguishable, a sudden border of untouched vegetation. Clearly terran, broadleaf trees, tall and most of them very old. The overhead canopy was heavy and except where the rising star shown through the treeline the forest interior was dark. Orange and dark yellow undergrowth girded the base of each tree, close enough to fill the ground level.

Adam came to a halt and gazed into the depths of the forest. After a while Natasha looked at him. He considered her and pointed up the treeline. "The terrain dips a bit over there, might be a water course." She nodded and they moved along the treeline, watching and listening.

The treeline suddenly opened up into shallow hills with mixed green meadows and a stream falling over rocks. Yellow flowers gleamed in the morning light, intermingled with some kind of spiral vegetation that flouresced purple. Both seemed to grow more readily in the other's presence, forming raised clumps together. Several kinds of avian bugs plied the fields. One danced daintily from one yellow flower to the next. Another preferred the purple, spiraling in like some kind of guided missile to the center. And another avoided both patches, seeming to find something interesting in the less overgrown areas between them. The stream bubbled down from the rise. Adam followed it up its ravine, Natasha trailing along behind. They passed over numerous broad courses, and Natasha set something on her helmet and watched the water.

"There are numerous aquatic animals, from several inches to two feet. Those along the edges have feet and spikes."

"They only come out at night," Adam grinned. She looked at him, then back towards the stream. She was getting used to him.

They crested a rise and entered a larger meadow interspersed with tree copses. This one was filled with grasses and a few clumps of the same growth they had seen at the base of the deep forest trees. Standing alone these clumps seemed to cower up into a ball, flowers poking out like spears from a primitive infantry phalanx. Looking around Adam saw a large pond in the middle of the meadow and headed for it.

The pond had a small gravel beach. Adam pulled up and halted at the water's edge, took off his helmet, and sat looking around, smiling but analytical. Level spot right there, full view, wood available, obvious fishing ....

Oh yeah. This could work.

And Trin?

As Natasha moved up Adam could hear a quiet beep from Gretel's systems. After some fumbling Natasha backed up the bike somewhat, looking at the ground with her HUD. Adam watched her. Natasha parked Gretel, got off, and reached down to the ground to pick up something. She raised her visor and looked at it carefully, then handed it to Adam.

A bullet.

Standard scout revolver light bullet. Lead core, copper jacket, grooves from the rifle lands, flattened on one side where it hit a rock or something. The copper was not green.

"Well. They were here," Adam commented. He looked around. "And now they're not."

"At what would they shoot?"

Adam shrugged. "All the regular reasons. We haven't seen any kind of major predator yet but there will be something, and maybe they saw one. Or maybe they were just practicing." He linked his comm. "Helga, you copy?"

"Copy," she came back.

"They were here. Score one for you."

"Yes," she answered. Adam laughed.

"Any sign of ship or personnel?" asked Laseiag.

"Nope, just a bullet, that's all. Natasha really knows her sensor systems. We'll look around a bit, but that's probably all we'll see. Break." He nulled the link and waved around the rest of the meadow. "Well, shall we?"

Natasha was staring at the edge of the grasses. Adam looked. A small animal, probably terran, had shuffled out into the open. Large upright ears, small puffy tail.

"That is rabbit," said Natasha.

"Yeah, it is. Good habitat for it," Adam commented.

Natasha seemed very interested in it. She took a few steps forward, and the animal did not run away. In fact it seemed unable to perceive her, as if something like a human did not register in its mind. It looked around, then found a piece of grass to chew on. She stepped carefully right up to it, then kneeled down beside it. It kept eating, as if blind to her. She reached out carefully and petted it, hesitantly, as if doing something she had only heard about. The animal looked around, and suddenly thumped the ground with its back running feet. She started back and hesitated, then petted it again, and it thumped the ground again.

Adam watched her closely. "You've never seen one, have you?"

"No. I read about them in education, I had thought I would like to see one. Aki has zoo, but I could never go there." She pet it again, friendly.

Adam blinked to see her being friendly to anything. He dismounted Hansel and walked slowly over, knelt down, and touched the rabbit's head. It thumped the ground yet again, but clearly was a simple creature and kept eating its grass. It seemed to Adam that the animal had an unusually stout head and strong neck muscles. He pulled out a flashlight from his equipment and carefully lifted the animal's lip, looking a little more closely at its mouth.

The teeth were amazing. Heavy duty jaw, teeth thick at the base tapering to an efficient chisel point, about a quarter inch wide.

He looked back down the stream at the deforested area beyond the treeline. No way. He pointed at the bare region and addressed the rabbit. "Did you do all that?"

Natasha seemed taken back. "What?"

Adam was about to answer when they both heard a thumping nearby. Some more rabbits had emerged from the grass a short distance away and alternated between chewing on grass and thumping the ground with their back feet.

"OK I don't like this let's go," Adam announced, standing up and holding out his hand to her.

Natasha seemed disappointed. She pet the rabbit one more time, then took Adam's hand and stood up and turned around and gasped in shock.

Adam whirled around. An avian was perched on his grav bike. Big, maybe four foot wingspan, white and blue, reptilian, long neck and head, hissing between long curved teeth. Not at him or Natasha, at the rabbit. At all the rabbits. More rabbits were pouring out of the grass, thumping and moving forward. Another avian landed on Natasha's grav bike, almost as big, also looking at the rabbits. They drew themselves up, wings out, claws on their wings, as if anticipating an attack. As if daring an attack.

"Hey! Get off the bikes!" Loud command voice. The avians suddenly seemed to become aware of him and looked at him, shocked.

A rabbit leaped up and bit the avian on Natasha's bike. It reeled, reoriented, and clawed the rabbit. Another rabbit leaped up and bit Hansel, making good progress against the heavy rubber footrest. Oh not good.

Natasha was hurling handfuls of gravel at the avian on Gretel, savagely yet gracefully efficient. Adam suddenly remembered his revolver. Draw weaver point lock pull and

Don't shoot the animal.

fired a shot past the avian. It started, both of them started, popping up into the air on their wings as the rabbits launched themselves like rockets at the avians and the grav bikes. "Go!" He and Natasha leaped onto their bikes and pulled them around, starting back down the stream at novice speed.

 

[flykiller]

He could hear them running behind the bikes, sort of a soft-rabbit-furred muffled thunder. The two avians were overhead, circling, out of peripheral vision he could see more. He guided Hansel between two of the spear bushes, he didn't think anything chasing was slowed down.

"Hansel! Advanced setting!" He could see the indicator panel blink red a few times, but nothing else happened. "Increase speed!" Same thing.

He glanced back. Hundreds of rabbits right behind Natasha, maybe a few thousand total moving in, several dozen avians spiraling down from overhead. One of the avians, different, smaller and mostly white, sped past Natasha raking its claws across her helmet. She yelped in shock. Several rabbits leaped at the avian as it swooped too low, it was carried down and swarmed and disappeared in the moving mass. Several more rabbits leaped at Natasha, one landed and she slapped it off as it flashed its chisel teeth.

"Slave your bike!" he yelled. He tried to get his helmet back on but had to jerk the bike controls to avoid a hillock. He passed onto the stream, hoping that would slow them down.

He looked back again. Gretel was following Hansel exactly and Natasha had completely reversed on her seat. She was ripping off the passenger cushion and mounting it on her left arm. One of the darker blue avians was maneuvering to her from behind, aiming, claws out. Adam drew his revolver, off-balance, point-aimed, took a moment, oh yeah on target, fired, hit it, it went down. Natasha didn't hear, she seemed to notice something about the seat construction, she yanked out a metal rod maybe two feet long. The passenger seat fell apart and the rider seat became unstable, but she held it all together.

He glanced forward and jerked Hansel to the right to avoid an overhanging tree, Gretel following and throwing Natasha off balance. He clumisily steered with one hand and linked his comm with the other. "Helga! Chief! Under attack, returning, lots of company!"

"Standing by," Laseiag answered calmly.

"What is nature of attacker?" Helga queried.

"Rabbits!"

Some hesitation. "Rabbits?"

"And something flying how do I make these bikes go faster!"

"From novice requires full shutdown and restart to adjust competence setting."

Adam glanced behind him. Natasha was standing high on the stirrups batting off rabbits with her seat shield and swinging viciously with the metal rod at avians diving past her. She hit one and took its head off. The rabbits and avians seemed equally eager to engage each other as well.

"No way!"

"Standing by," Helga answered simply.

They moved past the treeline into the barren area. It was a ways but Adam could see the Flower without the helmet and he pulled between the tree stumps heading for it. The rabbits followed, out into the open, a collection of the avians circling quite close now, picking off rabbits and probing Natasha, Adam suddenly wondering why he was not being swarmed himself.

"Dorsal hatch open. Large avian assemblage moving in over you," Laseiag reported.

Between dodging treestumps Adam glanced up. Over a hundred, mostly the small white ones but some of the larger blue ones mixed in. In fact it looked like the blue ones were leading groups of white.

The flock stooped, in individual flights, a blue avian leading each. Several at the rabbits, one at Natasha, one at Adam.

Adam gripped his revolver. 4 shots. "Natasha! Incoming!" Either she didn't hear him or was too busy beating off rabbits and aerial assaults.

The first flights arrived, mixing it up with the rabbits in the rear. The other two dived on Natasha and Adam simultaneously.

He decided. He guided Hansel as best he could towards a clear path approaching the Flower, swung around, drew his revolver again, and aimed at the blue lead on the flight diving at Natasha. Both hands weaver set point ... point ... hammer, lock, fire, miss, hammer, lock, fire, miss, hammer, lock, fire, hit. The blue avian seemed to lose all will and control and simply folded up in mid-air and fell. The white avians with it seemed to hesitate, break up, turn.

He felt Hansel maneuver. Auto-evade. A tree trunk whipped by as they passed it.

He turned to face the flight incoming on him, revolver up, one shot left. As he turned the blue lead right on top of him suddenly broke apart in midair. Laseiag expertly chambered another round and fired again, bringing down the white closest to Adam, again, again, focused, hard, he'd never seen a vilani look like that.

Adam hauled up Hansel at the ladder and dismounted anticipating Natasha's arrival. Gretel pulled up short, Natasha lost her balance, Adam caught her and pushed her towards the ladder as he fired off-handed at one of the few rabbits still pursuing, hitting it. More rabbits came, Helga picking off each one with single shots from her autopistol. "Shut down!" he yelled at the machines, and they settled onto the dirt. Adam scrambled up the ladder and down the hatch after Natasha, Helga followed, Laseiag fired off one more shotshell at an avian before dropping down and shutting the hatch.

Laseiag turned to face the others, weapon cradled casually in his arms, relaxed expression. "I think the animals here dislike humans."

Adam leaned against the bulkhead, looking at his revolver. "I thought this would be enough." He almost threw it down, but holstered it instead. He tried to keep his hands from shaking. "Nice shootin', Tex," he said to Laseiag.

"'Tex'?"

Don't throw up, don't throw up ... "Are you OK?" Adam asked Natasha. Helga was helping her remove her helmet.

"I am bitten," she said as the helmet came off. Hard, balanced, probably ready to fight again. Blood running down her left leg from just above the knee. Helga and Adam half-carried her to the lounge, pushed her back onto the bench with her left leg sticking out, and folded the table half back, unzipping Natasha's flight suit at the ankle and pulling it back to her hip. Two bites, a significant laceration above the knee and a minor one on the calf, deep but no chunks missing.

"Looks like you don't taste as good as a tree. Where is the ...." Adam started to ask. Laseiag handed over the full medbag. "I entered your cabin," he straight-facedly apologized to Natasha, who just nodded.

Between Natasha's instructions on how to treat the injuries, Helga said, "The avians are intelligent."

"Yeah, looked like it," said Adam. "You have no data on that?"

"None. This is major observation."

"Yeah. Rough first contact."

Laseiag asked, "Perhaps Purdue's first contact was unsatisfactory and that is why they attacked you?"

Adam thought. "I don't think so. I think we just got caught between some kind of war between the rabbits and the avians. The rabbits thought we were avians and the avians thought we were rabbits. I wonder if our grav bikes confused them."

Adam was watching Natasha. She was looking off to one side, thinking. Yeah you're a tough girl, but .... He stood up. "Well, let's pursue it. Helga, you're the professional, when you're ready let's go say hi."

Helga nodded decisively. "Ja!"

"If they are intelligent they will not appreciate their recent casualties," Laseiag pointed out.

"All the more reason to talk now."

"And intelligent does not mean reasonable."

"Which is why we will go out carefully and you will cover us. I trust you with that gun but I'm hoping that this time we can do this without shooting tribal elders. Helga say when."

"Yes."

Adam moved onto the bridge. He covered his eyes with his hand and he almost spit on the deck. Later. Later later later ....

How much later?

He looked out the bridge window.

Little skirmishes were still occuring here and there. A single rabbit was no match for an avian, but several seemed able to deal with one. The whites seemed to do most of the fighting, the blues were sitting on the tree trunk stubs watching and sounding off. Quite a few broken animals lay on the ground.

He moved to his cabin and obtained a few more light duty rounds for his revolver. He almost threw it down again, but holstered it instead again.

Double-minded.

Yes.

He gathered up his light jacket and stepped back out.

Helga was ready. Laseiag was right behind her.

He looked around the corner into the lounge. Natasha was still on the bench seat, expertly-applied bandages on her left leg, looking off to one side.

"OK?"

"I will live." Quiet. Adam pushed past Laseiag and Helga and into the airlock. He gathered himself up, popped the hatch, and climbed up.

 

[flykiller]

Adam scanned the sky but couldn't see anything airborne except for a group that was receding towards the treeline, stooping down on what must be the remainder of the rabbits running for the woods. He eased out and stood on the hull, making room for the others as they came up, surveying the scene on the ground.

Rabbits everywhere, some dying but mostly dead, killed by single clawstrokes or bites it seemed. Quite a few of the white avians, mostly looking chewed to death. He noticed a blue avian leaping down and killing a stray wounded rabbit, then leaping up to the top of a tree trunk stub and looking around, then leaping down to kill another wounded rabbit. Not a natural flyer but very energetic. He watched it closely. Yep, definitely reptilian in appearance, except even at this distance each scale was outlined and readily apparent, not gaudily but subtle. Not a strong creature but the head on its long neck was very agile and it seemed to be adept at biting or thrusting it forward in some kind of stabbing motion. Have to watch out for that. He studied the motion, and noticed that the avian always grabbed its target first either with the claws on its wings or with its feet which seemed to have no claws. Well, avoid being grabbed and that might do it.

Helga was beside him. He pointed to the stabbing motion by the avian. "See that?"

"Yes."

"And what shall we call them?"

"Draco Soldati and Draco Centurio," she answered immediately.

"Sounds dramatic but OK."

"There," said Laseiag, pointing with his shotgun.

A blue draco lay on the ground, dead or dying. Two more blue dracos were standing over it, heads together, rocking back and forth slightly.

"Helga?" asked Adam.

Helga lifted binocculars and studied the dracos for a moment. "Unknown. But perhaps good opportunity. We go." She started down the hull ladder, full equipment vest, data pad, autopistol.

Hope she knows what she's doing, and oh I hope not. He hesitated, then called down into the ship. "Natasha. Please stand by with the med kit."

A delay. "Lining up," she called back.

Good girl. "Chief Laseiag?"

"On overwatch," he answered easily, turning slowly for a full scan of the horizon and facing the downed draco again. "But recall I cannot shoot far."

"Recalled." Adam scuttled down the ladder. He and Helga started for the dracos. He noticed she was walking slowly.

"This going to work?" he asked.

"92 percent of first encounters for last three hundred years establish ongoing relations within one minute," she answered. "I try to remember my training." She set her data pad to record and mounted it to view the scene.

"Yeah, I know the statistic, I'm wondering about this particular instance, I've already shot enough things today."

"I trained for humans."

"Oh great." Three hundred years of 92 percent probably jump to 93 today.

They stepped over and around the torn and battered bodies, cut rabbits and chewed dracos. It looked like the Second Ground Campaign for Cipango. They all seemed to stare at him. He looked up and closed his eyes, then back down. Here and now. Focus on the living. Don't get angry again ....

He took a deep breath. Here and now. Focus on the living.

She turned at looked at him, questioning. He nodded. She turned back.

Helga approached the dracos slowly and quietly, listening. They were about three feet tall, beautiful creatures, their scales delineated by so many shades of blue in the sun, long tails trailing together. They were making some kind of high pitched noise, rocking over the downed draco, their heads and necks partially intertwined, their eyes shut. Keening. Definitely keening. The draco on the ground was alive, but had several severe bites and a broken wing and didn't look good.

They stopped several paces away. Adam could hear Helga very quietly testing her voice, trying to imitate the sound the dracos were making. Oh this will be interesting, crashing a funeral with pidgen draco.

The draco on the dirt noticed Helga and Adam, and turned its long narrow head to stare with one eye. It seemed lethargic and confused, as if having difficulty understanding what it was seeing. It chirped and clicked its teeth clumsily. The other two dracos looked up, looked right past Adam and Helga, and then seemed suddenly to see the humans.

Their jaws dropped. Long teeth flashing slackly in the sun.

Adam almost burst out laughing, the look was so comically human.

The dracos recovered immediately. One popped up onto the side of a nearby tree trunk stub. The other crouched protectively over the fallen draco. Both curled their necks and hissed ferociously, simultaneously. They seemed to have the same voice. Adam suddenly thought they had some kind of parental relationship with the downed draco.

At first Helga didn't react, she merely looked from one to the other staring at their eyes. This appeared to confuse them for a moment, but they hissed again more quietly and moved closer to her. Adam drew his revolver but kept it lowered.

Helga turned to him slightly and waved him down, deliberately, in view of the dracos. Turning back she slowly kneeled down, extended her left hand to the injured draco, and started keening. It sounded awful at first but after a few seconds she got the hang of it and was passably replicating the draco keen.

They were completely stunned. They drew their heads back, they twitched, they looked at each other.

Helga shuffled forward, towards the injured draco, and keened again, holding her left hand up.

They just looked at her.

She shuffled forward again, left hand up, and keened again.

The draco standing guard over the fallen one pulled back slightly.

Helga shuffled forward again, almost over the injured draco. The one standing guard postured and snapped at her, very fast, Adam almost drew down on it. Helga didn't even twitch, she just started keening again, left hand up.

The injured draco chirped and clicked. The one standing guard looked down at it, clicked, looked at Helga, and started keening with her. After a moment the draco on the tree stump wafted down and stood looking at the two of them, glanced at Adam, and then moved in, laying it's neck alongside that of the other and keening. Very slowly Helga put her head close to theirs and laid her arm to join with them.

 

[flykiller]

He stood watching them. Probably read about this in some updated scout textbook someday. He looked about the battlefield at all the other animals, untended. No funeral for them. These here must be upper caste.

The injured draco no longer was moving. It was gone. The two standing dracos keened more softly, then stopped, Helga following their lead ceasing with them and pulling her arm back. The two looked around as if seeking something, then they mounted up into the air, circling up in a tight spiral. Helga stood and looked up with them. They rose higher and higher, their spiral growing wider, Adam and Helga watching. It took some minutes but eventually they became difficult to see in the sky and were gone. Adam looked at the draco crumpled on the ground.

Eventually Helga said, "They spoke."

"Yeah, noticed that."

"And they take flight ...."

"... to follow this one's spirit," Adam pointed to the dead draco centurio, "yeah. And knowingly or not they appear to be taking steps to control their ecosystem," he added, pointing around at the tree trunk stubs. "Congratulations, looks like you've made contact with a complex race."

He heard his comm link, muffled in his pocket. He pulled it out. "Yeah?"

"There is one behind you," Natasha said.

Adam smoothly drew and pivoted on his left foot, coming back on his right to a weaver stance, weapon up, orienting to the draco as he saw it. The blue draco on the tree trunk stub two paces behind Adam had been looking at the Flower but seeing Adam's gun it suddenly dipped low, displacing out of the line of fire. Adam adjusted to keep the draco covered but it hung off to one side of the trunk staying out of aim, one wing clutching the trunk and one half-extended as if ready to fly.

Adam stopped tracking the draco and it stopped displacing. They stared at each other. This draco was a little larger than the other two. It had directional ears, they were oriented towards Adam. He could see numerous injuries on the creature's body.

"So you understand guns, do you?" Adam probed.

The draco glanced at the weapon, then back to Adam's eye over the barrel.

He carefully pulled back a hand and linked his comm. "How long was it watching me?"

"About half a minute," Laseiag replied. "It was studying you."

The draco had shifted its gaze to Adam's comm link, but when Laseiag spoke it looked back towards the Flower.

No way. "Natasha, cycle your comm link but don't say anything."

He heard the click, and as it clicked the draco glanced back at the Flower again, one ear flicking in that direction as well.

"Helga, you see that?"

"Yes."

He decided. "OK centurio, we can talk." He holstered his weapon and stood straight, glancing back at Helga. "You want this?"

"I observe."

The draco eased up slightly, a little straighter, and eyed Adam and Helga carefully, top to bottom. It very carefully moved to the forward edge of the trunk stub and leaned forward slightly, favoring one side as if some of its injuries bothered it.

Adam slowly stepped up to it. Boldly going where many sacrificial victims have gone before ....

The creature extended its neck slightly, head towards him, and sniffed, eye to eye. It snaked its neck forward and looked over his uniform, seemingly interested in the scout service patch on his left shoulder, then turned its attention to his equipment belt, gazing sideways at the revolver holster. Lastly it seemed intrigued by his comm link. Keeping its eyes on Adam's it reached out and touched the device with the claws on its wings. Adam held it out carefully.

"Keep ahold of it," Helga advised.

Adam kept a finger looped around the headpiece. The creature seemed to understand Adam's intent and simply moved it around, carefully examining all sides of it.

"You see its emissions, don't you?" Adam said.

While it was looking he noticed an injured rabbit hobble shakily around the tree trunk, one leg damaged, one ear cut. Oh yeah, you'll do.

When the draco finished Adam put the comm link on and turned slightly aside. "Chief Laseiag, Natasha, we'll be returning, with a guest so stand by, Natasha with your medical kit."

"Standing by."

The draco glanced between Adam and the Flower, then suddenly looked at Adam as if realizing something. It chirped and clicked.

"You wish to end this now?" Helga asked.

"Let's see what it does," Adam replied. He stepped carefully over to the rabbit and kneeled down to touch it. The creature seemed unaware of him, but the draco noticed it and hissed angrily. Adam gathered the rabbit up into his jacket as carefully as he could. The draco ruffled its wings and shook its head.

He reached across to his left shoulder with his free hand and gently eased off his Imperial Scout Service logo patch from its velcro mounting on his flight suit and extended it to the draco. The creature hesitantly reached out with its wing claws and took it, carefully, by one edge, looking at it and then at Adam.

"Let's go," he said to Helga, and started returning to the Flower. Helga looked at the draco and followed Adam.

He could see Natasha watching them with binocculars. She withdrew down the hatch, clearly favoring her left leg. As they approached the Flower Laseiag did a full circle scan then laid down his shotgun to help Adam, who climbed up clumsily half-way before Laseiag took the rabbit.

"Souvenier?"

"Sample." He looked back to the draco, which was still standing on the trunk stump watching them. He slid down the hatch ladder and reached up to take the bundled rabbit from Laseiag. He called up. "Tell you what, you and Helga come on down and leave the hatch open." Laseiag looked at the draco and nodded, and waited. Helga waited too.

He backed out of the airlock and walked down the corridor to the crew lounge. Natasha was sitting at the re-extended table, hands folded, med bag on the deck next to her. She did not look at him.

He considered her for a moment.

"I'm hoping you can do something for this rabbit."

"You patronize me."

"It's here for two reasons. One, it seems a variant of normal rabbits and it's obviously having a large impact on this eco-system so I'm thinking Helga may wish to study it more closely for her report. Two, I thought you might like it."

She said nothing. He waited.

"In the overhead compartment is a medical drop-cloth."

He reached up and found it, and handed it to her. She ripped open the package and spread the protective cover on the lounge table. He set the bundle down at the end of the table while she put on gloves, then she opened the jacket. She looked the rabbit over, then carefully lifted it up and set it in front of her. The animal cowered into a ball, eyes completely unfocused, holding still while she examined its torn ear but jerking slightly when she tried to look at the lacerated foreleg. She tried to calm it by stroking it, but it remained jittery about the limb.

"I am not veterinarian."

"It's still a terran mammal. Mostly. Probably."

She pulled a syringe kit out of the bag, mounted a needle, chose a bottle of something, and started to draw a dose. She considered the rabbit, then abbreviated the dose to a tiny amount. She looked at the animal's hindquarters, then it's shoulder, then shrugged her shoulders and pulled up a pinch of skin and injected whatever it was into the fold.

 

[flykiller]

The rabbit drooped slightly. Natasha pulled out a stethescope and placed it against the animals chest, adjusting the readout for its size and watching the various graphs. Yeah, that's the heartbeat, that must be respirations ... but Adam had no clue what the other data was for. The data pulses slowed and animal sagged like jello onto the drop cloth, panting hard but slowly, its eyes gazing sightlessly into the distance. Natasha put on the headphones and listened for a moment. "It responds normally."

"It has terran response to sedation?" asked Helga, moving up. She had some kind of kit with her and pushed past Adam moving into the seat on the side opposite Natasha and dropping her data pad onto the table. Laseiag remained in the corridor glancing at the animal and back towards the airlock.

Natasha considered Helga's question. "Yes." She examined the damaged leg, daubing up blood and pushing tissue aside. It made Adam's skin crawl to watch it. Helga pulled out a magni-viewer and examined first the animals ears then its fur and skin. "Please record everything," she asked Natasha, who nodded and pressed a button on the stethescope. Helga pulled out a comb and carefully searched the animals fur, concentrating on the neck and belly and studiously examining the comb tines and the drop cloth beneath whereever she combed.

"What are you looking for?" Adam asked.

"Parasites. There are none."

Adam considered. "Well now there's an advantage."

"Yes. Sonograph?" she asked Natasha, who pointed to a tool section. Helga removed it and examined the animal's skull, teeth, and neck on the viewscreen, her face a mask of professional concentration. Adam glanced at the view, the rabbit seemed to have a remarkable skull and neck bone and muscle structure. Helga continued down its body, pausing at its lungs and heart, then its other organs and traced its digestive tract to the end, frequently consulting illustrations and other data on her data pad. She then returned to examining the rabbit's teeth, consulting her data pad over and over again. Natasha had another tool and a detail viewscreen out and seemed to be working on the animal's leg tendons.

"So. Boy or girl?" Adam piped up.

"Terran male," answered Helga carefully and leaning back. "And has seventeen years."

Adam looked at the rabbit. "Is that normal?" he asked doubtfully.

"That is not a terran norm for this species." Helga clearly was impressed.

Adam thought about the devastated region around them. "And can it digest wood?"

"Determining that will require further study but this organ," Helga directed the sonograph to the animal's midsection, "would indicate that ability."

"So this animal is a plague here," said Adam.

"The preliminary indication is yes. And of further interest is the implied social structure of this species. We have seen them mass move and attack in combat in disregard of personal loss or benefit. Given its age this may be a leader."

"Or a buck private," Adam considered out loud. "How's its leg looking?" he asked Natasha.

She was finishing up a stitch. "It will limp. But the rest of it will heal." She glanced at Helga. "I presume this environment presents few threats of infection."

"That is unknown but the risk appears small," Helga answered.

"Our biomemes are a tremendous threat to it," Laseiag asserted firmly. Natasha seemed to consider this, and nodded. Adam shook his head at himself, leave it to a vilani to remember that.

"And speaking of combat," Laseiag added, pointing back down the corridor towards the open airlock. Adam looked and could see a shadow moving there.

"Chief Laseiag step back to engineering please, don't think we'll need your gun but keep it handy just in case." Laseiag nodded and pushed aft past Adam. "Ladies if there's a problem just hit the deck."

Natasha glared at him from her work on the rabbit.

"So we have a single field of fire," he added.

She considered that while pulling a stitch. "Is the bridge hatch shut?"

He glanced forward, the access to the bridge was wide open and dead center in the "field of fire", control panels and indicator lights in full view. Oh yeah you're 0 for 3 today. "No. Chief Laseiag can you avoid all that?"

"I cannot say."

"Well do your best if we need it and ladies hit the deck if we need it but we probably won't need it so everybody smile," Adam finalized. "Helga?"

"I observe." She lined up her data pad to view the lounge space.

"You're supposed to be the expert."

"Yes. I wish to see how it responds to home ground contact with you vice me being the largest individual here." Everyone glanced at her. "This will inform as to its social structure."

By the play of light from the airlock into the corridor Adam could tell the draco was in the airlock entry. "Well we're about to be informed of how well it responds to confined spaces."

Helga seemed suddenly to consider that. "This may be an issue."

"I think it'll do OK," Adam grinned. "It's a scout."

The draco eased its head into the corridor. It seemed to be hanging onto overhead bulkhead reinforcements and piping. Glancing forward then aft, it noticed Adam, and stared.

"Hello," Adam said, standing easy. He turned slowly to Helga. "Is there any particular way I should act?"

"As yourself for now."

He turned back carefully. The draco was still looking at him. After a moment it eased into the corridor, gripping overhead cabling with its wing claws and corridor fittings with its grasping feet. It watched Adam, gaging his reaction, then half-climbed further aft. Passing Helga's and Natasha's cabins it sniffed the air carefully, then climbed past the laundry machine. For a second Adam thought it was going to hit the machine's start switch. Oh yeah, permanent interspecies relations disaster because of a rinse cycle. But the draco made it past this interstellar incident and slowly advanced towards the lounge, looking everywhere it could see as it advanced.

Easing up entirely into the overhead grasping piping and fixtures as it came, it breached the lounge area and looked in, its eyes darting everywhere. It was not a large creature but its wingspread filled a good portion of the lounge entry and its alien presence seemed intrusive in the human space.

Adam could tell Natasha was very disturbed but hid it by continuing her work on the rabbit. The draco noticed its enemy and hissed, arching its neck and showing its fangs. Natasha looked it straight in the eye and said simply, "Mine." The steel in her voice was so evident it actually silenced the draco and it stared at her. She turned back to her work.

Adam carefully sat down next to Helga and waved his hand across the end of the table. No telling how the draco would see that.

As Adam cleared the corridor the draco noticed Laseiag standing in the entry to engineering, and clearly recognized the shotgun the Chief was holding. It pulled back slightly, as if it realized it was in a "line of fire" - then it postured slightly and pushed its head towards Laseiag, as if to say, "Well?" Perhaps it did say "well" - it clicked.

Adam almost laughed.

Laseiag recognized the posture. He safed his shotgun and stood it to one side and drew himself up facing the draco. "Ziru Sirka asmeshka ungashgar. Aarla." The first thing the first vilani explorer had said to the first intelligent species they had encountered thousands of years ago, and the same phrase they had used ever since. He placed his right arm across his midsection and formally bowed.

The draco seemed to accept this, and carefully set itself down onto the end of the table next to Adam, settling its wings and reversing its feet and powerfully gripping the edge to stand. It looked from Adam to Helga and back again, as if unsure, then it very deliberately placed a foot and wing forward and dipped its head and chirped and

curtsied

to the space between Helga and Adam.

 

[flykiller]

"Uh ... well. Where's an imperial noble when you need one?" Adam asked. Natasha simply blinked. Helga looked competently and professionally pleased. Laseiag gazed knowingly.

Adam unthinkingly started to extend his hand in the solomani manner but in mid-motion switched to the standard vilani greeting method. He placed his arm across his midsection and bowed slightly, then indidicated himself and said very clearly, "Field Scout Adam Warren." He indicated Helga. "Field Scout Helga Braun von Hochstaadt." She followed Adam's lead and clasped her hands together and bowed slightly. He pointed to Laseiag and said, "Field Scout Kishsuadkimku Lasa ..." he hesitated, "Kishkuadkimdu Lusa ...."

"Field Scout Kishsuumdadkiimku Laseiag Namuuishun," Laseiag completed and bowed again, seemingly taking his name's mispronunciation in stride.

"... and Administrator Natasha Sversk," as he indicated Natasha. She looked up slightly from the rabbit and quietly responded, "Das ve danya."

The draco looked carefully at each scout as they spoke, taking note of the correction of Laseiag's name but looking at their hair and eyes and clothing, as if seeking something but not finding it and being slightly puzzled. It glanced at each one and then slowly spread its wings, carefully filling the lounge, curling its neck and looking up as if posturing, and emitted a series of clicks and chirps in various tones, carefully retracting its wings afterwards.

"Helga, is that its name?" Adam asked. She didn't respond but looked coldly calculating, then pulled down her data pad and cycled through some of its settings. Her eyes widened with appreciation. "Its name or its social standing depending on preferences. But we cannot pronounce it fully." She showed Adam a display of the recording of the draco speaking. With the draco's verbal ennunciation Adam could see that there was a simultaneous emmission of UV from the edges of the draco's paper-thin wing scales.

"So ... we are as drab and boring as calvinist monks to it? And to each other they look like a laser light dance contest on Fornice?"

"Very likely. If I understand your references."

Helga reset her data pad. She then slowly reached across the table and carefully touched the draco's mouth, then reached back and touched her ears, turning her head to show the draco what they were. She tried to recreate a portion of the draco's verbalization, succeeding almost immediately with a passable imitation of it. She then slowly touched the draco's wings, then put her hands to her eyes and covered them.

The draco stared at her. It reached across with its wing claws, pulled her hands aside, leaned in very close and studied Helga's eyes very carefully as if looking at the backs of her eyeballs. Adam and Natasha tensed, she had a scalpel, Helga gazed right back confidently .... The draco pulled back, then dipped its head to the table twice.

"It's sympathetic to our blindness," chuckled Adam.

Helga nodded. "Chief Laseiag please bring a probe rod and some aluminum foil." Laseiag nodded and moved off. She held out her hand, showing both sides of it to the draco, then picked up a writing tool for her data pad. She twirled the tool around, passing it between her fingers flipping and catching it precisely over and over again. The draco stared at the action with an almost human expression of open-mouthed interest. Laseiag returned with the probe and foil. Helga took the probe, held it before the draco, and with some obvious effort broke it in half. The draco gazed with a horrified fascination. Helga then took the foil and folded it in half, gently opened it back up, and carefully stood it up in a barely standing tent shape.

The draco touched the aluminum foil tent, seeming to feel how fragile it was. It reached across the table and took hold of Helga's hand, putting its head close. It turned her hand around and back again, flexed her fingers, pulled at her nails, examined her finger prints, pressed to find the tendons.

Natasha had paused in her work to watch the draco. Adam noticed she glanced thoughtfully down at her own hand and flexed her fingers, as if seeing them.

The draco tried to bend Helga's fingers again, Helga held them steady. The draco looked at her and pulled hard, but was unable to make them move. Helga then carefully reached in with her other hand and gently took hold of the draco's winged claw-hand. She flexed the joints cautiously, examining their relationship to the rest of the wing. It stared at her face.

"Concurrent structure," she said quietly. "This main claw is extensible. That is how they use it while maintaining flight." She slowly released the draco's hand and it withdrew the appendage uncertainly. "An effective weapon especially if surprise is achieved."

After a moment Adam said, "OK, let's start wrapping this up."

Helga assumed a completely professional attitude. "This is major species. I wish to pursue."

"Yes it is, and yes you do, but we're not here for that. You already have first contact and data and you might be able to pursue follow-on contact when the Lu Hao comes through. In fact that might even become a major effort on their part." Helga considered this and nodded.

"This draco," Laseiag added thoughtfully, "seems familiar with firearms and was willing to take risks to pursue contact with us. Perhaps it is possible to ask it if it has seen the Purdue?" Helga leaned back to think about that.

"Let's be human hospitable and give it a drink before it goes," Adam added while looking at Helga who nodded, "see how it responds to that, just water we don't want to poison it, in, uh ... bowls, I guess." Laseiag nodded and brought down five bowls and filled each one with water.

They set the fifth bowl before the draco. It looked at its bowl, then at everyone else who already had lifted theirs. Adam thought for a moment the effort was a mistake, but he took a drink, and the others did too, and the draco leaned down, sniffed the water, and using its long snout like a straw took a sip.

"Time to go?" Adam asked the draco and everyone else. The others nodded, and the draco seemed to pick up on the action. Laseiag stepped back and Adam slid out to the corridor. "I still have my revolver, let's leave the shotgun here, a gesture towards a peaceful exit," Adam said. Laseiag looked dubious but nodded.

Adam asked Natasha, "How's the rabbit?"

"Another minute," she answered, glancing at the draco. The draco looked at her, then at the rabbit, then took a step towards it.

Natasha repositioned her feet and picked up her water bowl, small motions, clearly intending to bash the draco with the bowl. Everyone froze. It looked her in the eye, she looked right back.

The draco slowly passed its wing-claw hand across its eyes, then waved it towards the rabbit.

"Helga?"

"I cannot say."

Natasha was in a ready seated stance, sheer efficiency. She set the bowl down, very close at hand, but made no other move, her eyes fixed on the draco. She wasn't tense, she was ready, Adam could tell she was smoothly practiced and could sit this way for ....

After a moment the draco looked down and moved very cautiously, snaking its neck and head over the rabbit. It eyed Natasha's tools, looked at her hands, brought its face very close to the well-practiced stitching sealing up the creature's injuries.

 

[flykiller]

The draco settled back. It reached down slowly to touch the rabbit's teeth, then swung its claw hand in a circle, as if indicating the outside world, while looking at Natasha. It pointed at her, and chirped and clicked.

"Choose no side," said Helga.

Natasha stared straight into the draco's eyes. She then carefully looked over the avian, noting a particular gash in its side. She picked up an examination tool with one hand and pointed at the injury, never taking her eyes off of those of the draco.

"Do you wish me to help you?"

The draco seemed puzzled. It looked from Natasha's face, to her hands, to the rabbit, to it's injuries, and back again. It dipped its head and clicked.

"Do you wish me to help you?"

The draco looked at her hands again and slowly turned its injury to Natasha and pulled its wing away, glancing between her and the gash.

Natasha slowly turned her eyes to the injury and began to examine it, paying attention to a certain set of readouts from the tool. She also passed a probe under a sterilizer and closely examined the edges of the draco's skin.

The creature made a coughing noise and jerked. Natasha glanced up at it sideways, waiting. The draco put its opposite winghand down and grasped an overhead fixture with the other, steadying itself. Natasha turned back to her work.

"Do you know what you're doing?" asked Adam.

"No." She confidently sterilized several swabs and tried to clear something out from the injury, examining with the tool again and finishing up with a pair of tweezers. The draco was breathing very stiffly, eyes straight ahead, quietly clicking. Probably cursing, whatever passed for cursing among draco.

Helga was looking at the used swabs tossed to one side on the medical drop cloth. "Save its tissues for testing," Helga said.

Natasha glanced at her and considered this. "That is improper."

Helga began to answer, but then said, "Yes, you are correct" and left it at that.

Oh. Oh yeah. OK, 0 for 4 ....

"Chief Laseiag, did you ever check this world's status?" Adam asked quietly.

"Yes. There is no treaty, it has a bureaucratic semi-official preserve status only by declaration of the Indigenous Office. Some status is unclear."

"'Unclear' is not the word I want to hear," Adam said. "OK, we're authorized search and rescue and contact and research incidental to that, which so far all this has been. Their war, we got stuck in the middle, shooting in self-defense, this draco came to us, equal medical aid, so far it's all good and I don't want to get tangled up in this any more than we already are."

"And the rabbit?" asked Laseiag.

"Uh ... sample." Adam pointed to Helga. "If it asks you to leave it alone then leave it alone, otherwise look it over and we'll drop it off later."

Not smooth.

"Natasha, how's he looking?" he asked.

"I am finishing." She was applying a silicone pad over the injury to seal it shut. She passed some kind of light over it - the draco jerked away and covered its eyes from the light - and the patch seemed to set.

Seeming to relax a bit, the draco snaked its head down to look over the patch carefully, reaching across to touch it. Natasha moved her hand to block the draco touching the patch. "Two days," she said. The draco looked at her.

Helga kneeled down into the draco's view, and it turned to her. She pointed at the patch, then pointed straight up, moving her arm around in a great circle twice, then pointed to the patch again and made a small motion imitating the patch falling off. The draco looked at her, then the patch, then back and chirped several times.

"That sounds good, ladies and gentlemen let's call time here and move on," Adam said. Helga looked at the draco and motioned forward, then moved into her cabin. Laseiag cast a glance to Adam's sidearm - Adam nodded - then looked at the draco too and headed to the airlock, Helga moving behind him having retrieved something. Adam looked to the draco and motioned forward. "Shall we?"

The draco looked forward, then back to Natasha, who had sat back a bit. It leaned forward looking at her hands. She stared at it. It stood back, placed a wing and leg forward and curtsied again, then climbed into the overhead and back towards the airlock.

"Well it seems you've been promoted," Adam laughed quietly to Natasha. She had leaned back, her hand over her mouth, her eyes shut. He added, "You know, you're doing really well, I had thought ...."

She slammed the table with her fist.

Hard but not efficiently.

Again. She was shaking her head back and forth, her eyes shut.

He watched her.

She had her hands in front of her face as if trying to grip something. "Field Scout Warren I apologize this ...."

He leaned forward and put his hand along her face and under her chin, turning her eyes to his. She was stunned. He looked at her. What a filly, she really was fine, but there was something else in there, he tried to see it ... he couldn't, an open space, usually he ....

He let her go.

She sat looking down.

After a moment he said, "Helga says the rabbit is clean, might be good to keep it in your cabin while it heals. You can pick up your kit first, I'll straighten up here."

She nodded. She repacked her medbag, then crooked the dozing rabbit in her left arm while slinging the bag on her right and limped to her cabin.

He watched her carefully. She cradled the rabbit well.

He gathered up the medical drop cloth, remembering to roll it up from the outside in, then stuffed it into the trash compressor and ran the sterilization cycle. He stood thinking a moment.

Are you better.

He passed her cabin. The door was open. He did not look directly in, but watched her from the corner of his eye as shipboard etiquette allowed. She was kneeling by her bunk and laying out a blanket into a nest one-handed onto the deck, then placing the rabbit in it. She laid it carefully on its side, injured leg up, then watched it for a moment, faced away from him.

"C'mon, I'll help you up the ladder."

She nodded. He stepped into the airlock and climbed the ladder.

Maybe not a good move for her. The animal bodies were everywhere. Well, no reason to try and avoid it. Laseiag stood on the hull checking 360, seemed to be his station. Natasha appeared below and he kneeled down to grab her hand, helping her up as she favored her leg. Laseiag noticed this and watched them askance.

The draco had just flown off the hull down to a tree stump near Helga. It pointed to its silicone patch, then up at the local star, made a sweeping full-circle motion following its relative orbit twice, then made a motion to remove the patch, looking at Helga. Helga glanced at Natasha, who nodded and said, "Yes." She nodded in turn, said yes very clearly, and repeated its motions. The draco seemed to understand, glancing back and forth between Helga and Natasha.

Adam slid down the hull ladder. "OK, any chance of asking him if he's seen the Purdue? This I have to see."

"Yes. I try."

 

[flykiller]

Helga got the draco's attention and pointed to herself. The draco looked between Helga and her hand. "Field Scout Helga Braun von Hochstaadt." She pointed to the others. "Field Scout Adam Warren. Field Scout Kishsuumdadkiimku Laseiag Namuuishun." The draco glanced between her and Adam. "Administrator Natasha Sversk." Helga walked up to the Flower and slapped it several times while looking at the draco. "ISS Flower." She took out a chalk marker and on the hull where the ships name should have been she wrote out the ship's name. "I - S - S - F - l - o - w - e - r", sounding out each letter.

The draco pulled its head and wings back, staring at the markings.

Helga used a rag to erase the name, then wrote it again, sounding out each letter.

"A B C D E F G," Adam sang quietly. Overhead he heard Laseiag say, "sha kum ga nam ..." only he made it sound like something out of an opera.

The draco barely moved. It clicked and chirped.

"Ah." Helga nodded and pointed at the draco's mouth, then on another part of the Flower wrote a series of symbols, various stars and rising and lowering lines, as she wrote them doing a passable job at sounding out the clicks and chirps the draco had made.

The draco had leaned back even further, it's head pulled very far back. It suddenly leaned forward, it's head and muzzle pointing towards the hull where Helga had written. It clicked.

Helga wrote a star symbol and pointed to it, imitating the draco's click.

It stared, then suddenly did a full running turn around the top of the tree trunk like a mad squirrel, coming to an abrupt halt in exactly the same spot and position it had been a moment before. Adam almost burst out laughing but managed to contain himself. The draco chirped, once, a simple sound. Helga considered the sound, tried to repeat it, then wrote a straight line with a slight dip at the end.

It pulled back its head again. It made a more complex chirp. Helga tried to imitate it, and tried to make some kind of symbol representing the sounds, but couldn't seem to get it right. She stepped up to the draco and offered it the chalk marker to the draco, who took it and examined it carefully. She then stepped back to the Flower's hull, got down on one knee with her other knee up as a platform, and motioned to the draco as if inviting him to land on her and write on the hull.

It considered, then flapped forward and settled on her thigh, leaning on the hull with one wing hand. She grimmaced as the draco's feet gripped her leg with obvious strength, but held still. The draco looked at her, then at the chalk marker again, and hesitantly tried to make a mark with it. It produced a long and trailing scrawl, like a child, but seemed to realize right away it could vary the thickness of the line by changing the pressure of the stroke. It chirped softly to itself and scrawled a line, changing it several times as it seemed trying to figure out something.

"Helga let's make that a homework assignment, OK?" Adam suggested quietly.

"Yes," she grunted. The draco was gripping her leg more tightly. She caught its attention again and held out her hand for the chalk marker. The draco seemed reluctant but gave it back and flapped back to its tree stump, seeming to be preoccupied with some thought. Helga stood up and started again, going through everyone's name and writing "ISS Flower" again. She then erased the name, pointed to the local star overhead, and began swinging her arm around following the stars course but reversed. The draco stared. Helga continued for a few dozen revolutions, then stopped inconclusively. She said very clearly, "ISS Purdue", and wrote on the hull "ISS Pur", about where the Purdue should have painted its name. She pointed to the draco, then its eyes, and then swung her hand around the horizon in a full circle, then knelt down again and offered the chalk marker to the draco.

It flapped over to her knee again, took the chalk marker, and with great concentration childishly scrawled a finish to, "ISS Pur" - "dvc".

"OK, we have a winner, that's a pattern match, he's seen it before," Adam said. "Helga, where away?"

The draco flapped back to the tree trunk again and Helga stood up uneasily rubbing her leg. She pointed to the writing the draco had finished then in various directions and looked at the draco. It turned deliberately, set its feet, raised its wings, and pointed with its head and neck. Southeast.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I think we have an azimuth," Adam said.

Helga had her data pad out and was orienting it in the same direction. She checked various entries.

"Well?" Adam asked.

"Several points of interest, all non-primary except for one human habitation," Helga said.

Adam hesitated. "Such as?"

"By approach to mid-orbit, glacier, human habitation, oceanic bio-locus, jungle-desert transition, and large active volcano, followed by open ocean glancing south polar regional ice."

"Chief Laseiag, can an S-class be modified for seawork?" Should have asked more questions before we left Karin.

"Not easily," Laseiag answered. "That is a general tasking ship not purpose-built for that environment."

"And oceanic studies are long-term survey, not scouting assignment," added Helga. "As are non-resource-involved vocanic and glacial studies."

"And they weren't supposed to contact the natives at all," Adam mused for a moment. He decided. "OK, let's fly where he says, have a look checking for comms and pinging for bots," he looked at Natasha, who nodded, "and see what we see. If nothing else we can scope the humans as we pass the bay, I want to see whatever we can of them anyway and there's no reason we can't engage in non-intrusive studies of the natives," he added, looking at Helga.

"Yes."

"Now would be a good time to refuel," added Laseiag, "as there are fresh-water lakes nearby. I would rather break in the purifier on fresh water than salt."

Adam thought a moment. "Yeah, but we have plenty of fuel right now and the centurio's given us a direction," Adam said pointing to the draco, who was watching all of them, "so let's take it so he's not confused or insulted. We'll probably see a source along the way and if not we'll be back here soon in any case."

"How accurate is this azimuth?" Natasha asked.

"Most avians have highly developed directional sense, and I access alignment algorithm," Helga answered professionally. Natasha seemed satisfied.

"Anything else?" Adam asked. No-one added anything. "OK, that's it. Chief Laseiag we'll lift in a bit, Natasha please get Helga's azimuth. Helga maybe you can give the draco your chalk marker, we can spare it? And he can fly with it, right?"

"Yes and yes." Helga stepped to the draco and offered him the chalk marker. He took it, studying it more carefully, then watched her walk back to the Flower and the other crew descending into the hatch.

Adam walked up to him and offered the Vilani greeting, bowing. "Thank you." The draco chirped, some kind of sing-song he hadn't heard before. Probably a good word. He turned to go, taking a last look around at the battlefield.

He stopped. A draco soldati was almost upright, propped up by three dead rabbits that had pressed in to attack. It had killed all three before dying itself.

He stared at the scene. He angrily raised his face to ....

Don't.

He knelt down by them, reaching out to touch the soldati, then one of the rabbits, both. They were still warm, the soldati very much so. He started, "Our Father ...." but that was as far as he could get. He almost ....

The centurio landed across from him. He looked at it. It dipped its head, then waddled nearer, holding its head with Adam over the soldati and rabbits.

He closed his eyes and finished it.

He looked up, the centurio was watching him. Adam started looking around, raising his face. The centurio started looking with him. As Adam looked high the centurio flapped into the air and started up, Adam's scout patch in one claw and the chalk marker in the other, spiraling wider and wider as he gained altitude.

Eventually Adam couldn't see him anymore.

 

[flykiller]

He stood up and turned back to the ship. Natasha was looking at him through the bridge window. She didn't seem so hard. He noticed Hansel and Gretel, parked in the dirt. Oh yeah, 0 for 6. Probably ought to stop counting. He waved to Natasha and pointed to the bikes. She nodded and moved away. He approached the bikes, looking for and finding the on switch. They powered up and rose a bit, Gretel's partially disassembled seat rattling. He linked.

"Helga, forgot the bikes, get the garage door please, and I think Natasha dropped the bolt bar in the corridor."

"Yes."

He searched the ground for any more parts, found a few, then led the bikes aft. Helga whistled them up, latching them into their mounts and shutting them down. He could see she was favoring her right leg. There was grass and foliage caught on the bottom of the bikes and Helga started to toss it out. "Wait, save that, the rabbit might want it." She nodded. He tossed up the parts to her, then headed to the port ladder as she secured the garage hatch. He climbed the ladder and slid down into the ship, leaving the hatch open, then moved to the bridge, looking down at the deck, thinking.

What do I do?

No answer.

He guessed.

Stop guessing.

He eased into the bridge, standing tall. Natasha was in the navigator's seat, plotting a course. He looked at her. She looked over her shoulder at him.

He pointed to her injured leg. "You able to fly?"

She nodded, keeping eye contact. He met her gaze, then sat in his seat switching on his panel. "Then line up and take her out. Any comms or pings?"

She looked down then over her panel. "No, nothing."

"Well, maybe we'll see something on this flight. Helga I left the airlock open, before we lift please put eyes on our overhead so we don't lift through any flocks."

"Yes," Helga responded.

"Engineering on-line", Laseiag announced.

"Acknowledged, prepared to lift on clearance by Helga," Natasha announced.

After a moment Helga called, "Overhead clear."

"Lifting," Natasha announced as she checked sensors overhead. The Flower lifted easily, and she swung it to the plotted course as it rose.

"Port forward airlock unsecured," Flower announced. After a moment it corrected, "Port forward airlock secured."

"Helga?"

"Inboard," she answered.

Adam watched the treeline and creek and pond fall away then turn from view. Nice spot but the middle of a warzone. He scanned his panel, checked fuel, then accessed the sensor suite to line up the scope. He viewed towards the bay as the Flower rose. Hazy. Natasha settled the Flower into an easy atmospheric course on the azimuth.

"Time to bay?"

"An hour," Natasha answered.

"OK, tell you what, let's trade off for lunch, I'll take it for now. Helga pulled some plants off of the bikes, maybe the rabbit would like some of it. I think he might like some of the potatoes we have too."

"Carrots. They like carrots."

"Oh." Adam laughed. "He can have as many of those as he wants. I have the conn."

"You have the conn." She unbuckled and eased towards the hatch. She stopped, and hesitantly put her hand on his shoulder, looking at the deck.

He moved his face over her hand, then looked at her. "You need to take care of your rabbit."

She nodded, and eased off the bridge.

He scanned his panel again. "Chief Laseiag, stable flight, you can eat if you want."

"Acknowledged, out of engineering."

Natasha had left her comm linked, he could hear her in her life support module taking a shower before she went to eat.

The local star was high overhead, the forest stretched away. After a while it began breaking up into meadows and hill country, advancing towards the mountain range with the glacier. Magnificent clean gray stone rising high and snow-peaked, lots of broken country to the north, quite a few streams flowing from it.

Natasha relieved him and he moved to the lounge to wolf down some food. Helga was there with her data pad.

"The upcoming mountain range is magnificent. Just how active is this place?"

"It is very active. Earthquakes and tsunamis are above average in occurance. This mountain range is new and the region around it is expected to have many fossil remains."

"Well we should be over the bay just about now, should be able to scope it through the haze. Do you want to observe from the bridge or your cabin."

"Cabin."

"Let us know what you want."

"Twenty thousand feet, minimum speed to avoid contrail." He nodded and headed back to the bridge and settled into his seat. Natasha had overheard Helga and had already adjusted the flight regime. She seemed focused and was watching her panel closely.

"You got this?"

"Yes." She was handling the ship well, gaining experience.

"Chief Laseiag, you catch that?"

"Acknowledged, minimum speed and lift regime."

Adam lined up the scope again and passed the controls to Helga's cabin desk. "I'll just have a general look around, you focus on what you want," he said.

"Yes."

He lined up a display to show what she saw, then just looked out the window.

It was truly magnificent. High fluffy clouds, looked like a calm sea with few whitecaps, the snowcapped range looming over the bay. He didn't know a thing about sailing but could see the attraction immediately.

Helga was scoping the shoreline. Almost immediately she centered a village, several dozen huts set high on the beach, canoes set well away from the waterline. Interesting, the housing was organized almost in a grid pattern, and there appeared to be a stone street down the middle. Not savages. The arrangement of the canoes seemed to indicate most of them were absent, and Adam scanned the ocean trying to see them on the water. Eventually he saw some, mostly by their wakes. They must have sails. He marked the coordinates and passed them to Helga. Eventually she turned the scope to them. Yep, sails, the boats were at least twenty feet long, indicating some kind of construction.

He noticed another disturbance on the water, and passed the coordinates to Helga again. when she got to them it immediately was obvious that it was caused by large sea animals, breaching the surface and throwing up spray. Several dozen at least. They must be huge.

A bright glint caught his eye. It was near the village Helga had scoped earlier. Probably some shiny rock ...

It glinted again. And again, lingering, vibrating.

"Helga, you see that?"

"Where?"

He passed the coordinates. She focused in on it. A few people, indistinguishable, the glint suddenly flashing again directly from one of them several times.

"Well, they see us," Adam commented. Natasha glanced at him. "Do we have a contrail? Natasha do full V and a 360." Natasha flat-spun the Flower in a full circle, and they scanned their 180. No contrail. Natasha reestablished the minimal regime, then looked over the external features configuration. "They see our own glint. And in spinning we flashed them," she reported.

"OK, two first contacts in one day," Adam said rubbing his forehead. "And they're trying to communicate. Helga, how do you want to handle this?"

"I wish to contact," Helga replied.

"We're not supposed to," Adam started.

"It is an unusual contact and might be the Purdue crew," Laseiag spoke up.

"Uh, yeah, yep that's true," Adam admitted. "OK, that meets the requirement, we go in. Helga, since we don't know exactly what's going on yet let's do a simple walk-in and not land in full god-mode."

"Yes."

"Where away?"

"Swing around eastern mountain range and come in from east."

He looked over the terrain. "OK, looks good, it'll be sunset there about then and we can go in in the morning after a good look around. Sound OK?"

"Yes."

"OK, Natasha I have the conn, plot us a ... minimal glint course around that range over there and I'll swing it in."

"You have the conn."

"By the way any comms or pings?"

She checked her board while entering some data. "None."

Adam shook his head as he added speed and altitude. "Maybe they crashed. Chief Laseiag, normal flight."

"Acknowledged."

 

[Jame]

This is very good! Keep going!

 

[flykiller]

Adam waited for Natasha to come up with a "non-glint" course. Should have remembered that one, make sure it's in the report, add it to the textbooks. "Fifty ways to blow your cover" ....

Laseiag spoke up. "Helga, we saw you limping earlier."

"Yes. Avian pedal organs are very strong in relation to their weight. I failed to consider my action." Could hear her rubbing her leg.

"And Natasha, how is your injury progressing?"

Natasha looked at Adam. He frowned.

"It is significant laceration. I will know my mobility tomorrow morning but I anticipate significant reduction."

"And we are to attempt to hide and walk in some distance unsure of our reception? And in addition unsure of contact at all? Tomorrow they may be located in the next village over."

"Correct procedure specifies gradual contact with primitive societies," Helga said.

"And we are specifically mandated to minimize contact here," Adam added. But the man has a point.

"Not at the expense of safety. We are a minimal crew, the indigenous population already has seen us and signaled us, and they may already be in contact with the crew of the Purdue. There is no reason to hesitate here."

Adam thought a moment. "Helga?"

She hesitated, but said, "Concur." Happily.

"Natasha?"

"In truth I should not walk. And we should not separate the crew."

"OK, by popular request we'll drop in now," Adam concluded. "Natasha you remain aboard in the pilot seat, Laseiag you'll probably do the usual on-hull overwatch, Helga you lead and I'll back. Anything else?" No-one added anything. "OK, if we're going in let's make a splash, Natasha take the conn and see if you can make the ship flash back at them."

"I have the conn." She ran a few equations, swung the Flower back around on a landing approach, and wobbled the ship a few degrees. Helga had set the scope on the people on the beach, they seemed to act as if they had seen something. Adam scanned the beach, looked OK to land, he picked a preliminary spot.

"About twenty minutes?"

"Twenty-three."

"OK, I'll take the conn, show me a glint maneuver for about ten minutes out, let 'em know we're getting closer so they can call out a welcoming committee, and maybe you should check on the rabbit and relax a bit yourself, I'll have to call you back when we're in proximity."

She nodded and transferred a maneuver plan. "You have the conn." She eased up, sneering silently in obvious pain at the movement, and eased off the bridge.

"Chief Laseiag the preliminary landing zone looks clear so I anticipate minimal stress on approach and landing."

"Acknowledged."

Adam felt the world looming closer as the approach developed. Never got to know any kind of ocean, probably shouldn't pay too much attention until this contact is developed ... his eyes kept turning to it ....

Helga had the scope set to the small group on the beach. They were pointing up at the Flower and talking. The signaller was female, most of the others were males, some of whom had some kind of polearm weapon, probably spears. At the ten minute mark Adam put the Flower though a glint maneuver. Must have got it right, they all froze in place and stared at the obviously approaching flash. Probably juveniles, long unsecured blonde hair, standard simple short skirts for the males, short tunic for the two female, have to find out what they use for cloth .... one of the males ran up the beach towards the village, very fast, some canine-looking animals running with him looking happy as can be. The rest of the group just stared. No adults, no imperial uniforms, looked like simple indigenous. Well, 0 for ... something.

"Helga, do we want to just land or wait for any welcoming committee?"

"Set down and debark immediately to assess initial group reaction before full strength is assembled. Many primitives have ecclectic response to first contact, especially males."

"See the boy running up the beach?"

"Yes. Healthy and very fast."

"Crew sing out and acknowledge that and presence of companion animals, probably dogs or something similar, and weapons, spears." Laseiag and Natasha both acknowledged.

Adam could see the figures on the beach without the scope now, and they could see the Flower. They looked stunned. Head's up. "Chief Laseiag, Natasha, on approach." He eased over to starboard, then port to line up on a likely spot. Natasha limped onto the bridge and buckled in, taking in the sight and approach immediately. She had a pair of binocculars.

"I got it, just give me visuals," he said. She nodded.

A fair quantity of other villagers were appearing at the top of the hill by the village. They all stopped and stared. Seemed like mostly women and children and a few old men, no obvious Purdue crew among them either. Some dogs barking, looking around at the humans as if saying, "Is this what I'm supposed to do?"

Adam shook his head. Antedeluvian, shame to disturb it ....

Natasha felt the change in ship handling. She looked at him. He glanced over, and winked, then double-checked the approach point about a hundred paces from the group on the beach. "Touching down," he announced. He flared the boat, took one last look, eased down, settled the boat and set vector to zero.

"Down."

The teenagers on the beach were staring at him and Natasha, open-mouthed. One of the boys looked suspicious. The ones up at the village weren't moving. The dogs were turning in circles, barking at each view of the Flower.

"Chief Laseiag let's keep everything on standby and you follow us out. Helga I assume you're ready and armed, no reason to wait, you ease on out while I arm up. Ladies and gentlemen, maximum restraint here."

"Yes."

Natasha was scanning the group on the beach and the group up at the village through her binocculars.

"Actually, when they see what big eyes you have, that probably frightens them more than the ship," Adam said. She seemed to consider this, then resumed her scanning. Adam grinned. He unbuckled. "Flower, outhull close-contact protocols." The machine responded and Adam slipped off the bridge and past Helga on her way out with her fully loaded vest, and into his cabin. Revolver, two loaders, all light loads. He headed back forward to the airlock, Laseiag right behing him with his shotgun again.

"Chief Laseiag check six frequently, lots of primitive cultures celebrate theft."

"I will," Laseiag answered easily.

Adam grinned. "You know that already, don't you."

"There is much to recall. Review is always welcome."

Adam cocked his head at the shotgun. "Non-lethal?"

"First three. Speaking of review, are you ready if the leader challenges you, or demands gifts, or expects you to perform a miracle?"

Adam laughed out loud. "I can wing it. But right now that's Helga's job, and we're here to back her up in success or failure, and in any case I'm hoping we can just ask and answer a few questions and then move on."

Adam nodded and headed into the airlock. "Yeah." He paused, shook his head again, then jogged up the ladder.

 

[flykiller]

The air was so alive, yet clean. Not empty, filtered and sterilized, but ... the way it should be. Adam had never smelled anything like it. The waves on the beach set a rolling background noise, he'd heard it before made by some machine that was supposed to help one sleep, the sea made the machine sound fake. The vast blue sky seemed like a window to heaven, God's eye looking down.

The natives from the village were hurrying down, the older men and women falling behind the younger children who ran pell mell, the dogs running with them. The teenagers on the beach just stared. One of the boys held his spear at port arms, like a shield. The girl held what looked like an obsidian sheet with a hole drilled in the center. The look on her face was clearly, "Did I do this?" All of them tall, well-formed.

Helga already was at the foot of the ladder and striding towards them, erect, a head taller than any. Adam slid down and fell in several steps behind her. She stopped a few paces in front of the teenagers and walked their line, looking them over carefully, as if inspecting them.

The village children ran up, about twenty or so, filling in with and around the teenagers, and stopped. Helga gazed at them. Everyone was completely silent, even the dogs.

An upturned small boat was near. Helga sat on it with authority, raised her hands to the children as if readying for an embrace, and smiled so enormously she looked like the sun.

"Kinder!" Her voice boomed out like an opera call.

The teenagers jumped. The children all cheered and raced up, surrounding her and jumping up and down as if welcoming their mother. The dogs joined them, milling around the outside of the small crowd and barking up at the air. Like a Moran matriarch at a family reunion, Helga picked up the smallest one in reach and placed the child on her knee, reaching around and touching the heads of all the others as if blessing them.

The adults from the village, several dozen, arrived, and stood in a semi-circle around her. Some old men but mostly females, some pregnant. They gazed in awe at Helga, and glanced at Adam and Laseiag. One old woman with many tatoos and some kind of head dress and leading an apparently blind girl was chanting something, Helga trying to listen to it while continuing to observe everyone and to address the jumping children. One woman, staring at the child on Helga's knee, was covering her mouth and clearly on the verge of crying. The old tattooed female put her arms around her and waved to the child on Helga's knee and then to the sky excitedly, continuing her chant. It was a heavy language, emphasizing both vowels and consonants as if each were independent of the other.

Helga looked at and pointed to the distressed woman, waving her over. The woman approached slowly, almost weeping, obviously pleading. Helga reached out and touched her head, then whispered something into the child's ear. The child giggled happily, and Helga then handed it over to the woman, who almost dissolved in relief as she carried it away. As she passed by the old tattooed female rapped her on the head with a short staff and said a single word, and then turned back to Helga and started chanting again. All the children were staring open-mouthed. Helga glanced around at them experimentally and grinning called, "Also?" They all started up again, the girls with one hand up and faces raised hopefully, the boys howling with both hands up in the air.

Several of the old men were standing together, observing Adam and Laseiag, talking quietly. One of them managed to call two of the dogs which immediately came to him and crouched at his feet facing outward. Another of them managed to attract the attention of two of the teenaged boys, and call them over to stand next to him, their spears idly ready but their faces puzzled.

Adam glanced back to the Flower. Laseiag was standing on the hull like a warrior, feet easy apart, shotgun held in a manner marking it as a weapon even if one had no idea what a shotgun was. He saw Laseiag nod very slightly.

And Natasha was just approaching from the foot of the ladder. She had her medical bag with her and the binocculars around her neck. She was limping badly. Well, there goes the bug-out plan, no pilots on the ship. What brings this on.

"Helga, Natasha's moving up like she knows something," Adam called just loud enough to be heard over the childrens' shouting. Helga looked back and nodded.

All of the adults and teenagers were watching Natasha. As she approached, they all, except for one of the older men, got down on one knee. All of the children saw them, turned and looked at Natasha, then laid down on the ground facing her. The old tattooed female's chant continued quietly.

It shocked Natasha, and she froze in mid-stride. Just for a second, then she kept limping forward. Adam maneuvered very slightly so as to cover both her and Helga. The one old man who had not knelt down watched carefully and obviously understood exactly what Adam was doing.

As she approached Natasha said to Helga, "I recognize this language group. May I interact?"

"Yes ... ?" said Helga.

Natasha tapped her binocculars and pointed to the teenage boy kneeling next to the girl with the obsidian mirror and said to Adam, "This one has laser burns."

Adam raised his face in realization. "OK." Natasha limped up to the boy and said something to him, sounding similar to the chant. The boy looked up at Natasha - Adam now noticed the scars on his face and the one turned eye - and stood up, dropping his spear. He seemed proud, but somehow resigned. The old tattooed female chanted a little more excitedly, and the blind girl behind her smiled into her darkness.

Natasha and the boy exchanged a few sentences, apparently working out each others' vocabulary. She closely examined the scar tissue on his face and passed a viewer across his damaged eye.

"Tell Helga what you are saying, let her control this as much as possible," Adam told Natasha. "I'm going to bring the blind girl up, OK?" he called back.

"No. She will believe she is chosen. Let Natasha approach her."

"OK." Adam waited.

"He wants to know what color star we are from," Natasha said.

Helga seemed to consider this. "Tell him Karin."

"Can you ask him how he received his burns," added Adam.

Natasha nodded and spent several sentences with the boy. "He says a star came down and showed his sister many other stars." She pointed to the blind girl. "He says he hit it and it showed him more stars. He is sorry hit hit it," she added.

Adam nodded. "The Purdue's survey bot."

"The burn is consistent with a low power defensive system," Natasha agreed.

"So it must be close by. Ask him where he saw it."

This actually took her several more sentences, but eventually he turned and squinted off into the distance, and carefully pointed, describing something. Natasha seemed to query him more, stumbling over her words.

"Limit your questions," Helga called.

Natasha nodded, and stopped speaking. She hobbled up to the blind girl and looked into her eyes with the viewer. The girl seemed almost eager.

"Are they treatable?" Helga asked.

"I cannot say. Not with this equipment."

"Then say nothing of that. Tell them only that more of us will come eventually."

Adam glanced back at Laseiag. The man saw him look and held up four fingers, then pointed towards the sea. Adam nodded. "OK, we have the village men coming ashore, hate to say this twice in one day but let's wrap this up." Natasha nodded, spoke a few more words, then put her equipment away and started limping back to the Flower.

The blind girl was crest-fallen. Watching Natasha leave the boy cocked his head at Adam doubtfully.

The old tattooed female was considerably more direct. She stood up and thwacked Adam on the head with her stick, saying one word.

"Ow! HEY!" He grabbed the stick, but she held on and stared him straight in the eye. Everyone was standing up. Natasha was watching.

He rubbed his head. "Yeah, you have a point." He let go of the stick and she glared at him.

"Helga, you have your comm link?"

"Yes."

"Let me have it. And your service patch." He stepped over and she smiled as she handed them over. "Head out," he told her. He walked to the boy, picked up his spear, and gave it back to him. He also pulled out of his equipment belt his issue scout service knife and gave that to him. The boy, and everyone around him, stared at it. Adam walked to the old woman and gave her Helga's service patch - she gaped, seeming to grasp what the imperial starburst was meant to depict.

The blind girl was still kneeling, confused. He knelt down next to her, locked down all the comm link settings, and carefully set it on her head. He called back. "Natasha. Tell her that I've been to many stars, that the most beautiful star I've ever seen, and that when we return she'll hear us again."

Natasha turned away towards the Flower and linked, speaking. She seemed to have trouble getting the point across and it took a while but the blind girl gasped at hearing the voice through the link, then covered her mouth with both her hands, her blank eyes wide.

Adam rose and strode back to the Flower. Most of the tribe were gathering around the blind girl who was pointing to Natasha and explaining something. He glanced out over the ocean, several boats approaching, oh yeah, time to leave, let's not make this too complicated, Helga already in-hull, Laseiag was helping Natasha up the ladder, Adam grasped the rungs.

 

[flykiller]

One of the old men hobbled up and grabbed Adam's arm, seemingly confused by the fabric of the uniform. Another thing you forgot to ask about, 0 for something again. The man wheezed out a question, and Adam glanced up at Natasha.

"He says this place is not a star."

"What's their word for star?"

"Stjarna."

Adam pointed to 875-496-0 overhead. "Stjarna."

The old man followed his point to the blazing object. He seemed to slowly realize something, forgot Adam, and let go.

 

[flykiller]

Adam trotted up the ladder, glancing back over the ocean. Yep, four boats pulling up, here any minute. A few too many men to be a fishing expedition, not that Adam knew anything about fishing expeditions.

Laseiag helped Natasha down and dropped her bag to her, then glanced around one more time before handing down his shotgun.

"Let's get a light-off going," Adam called. Laseiag nodded and slid down into the hull. Adam looked back at the assembled villagers. The children were all crowded around the boy to whom he'd given the knife, trying to pry it out of his hand to look at it. He seemed distracted, as if his encounter had not gone as he'd expected. The woman who's child Helga had held was sitting back a ways on a boat, rocking her child back and forth. The old tattooed woman walked up to her and hit her on the head again with her stick, speaking and pointing back at the Flower.

The men were leaping ashore, spears in hand, running towards the ship. Big boys, blonde hair in the wind, focused eyes, moving fast. The old tattooed woman saw them and screeched, hobbling at breakneck speed to intercept them, waving her stick.

Hey, let's make contact, see what happens .... Adam dropped into the airlock and shut the hatch. Natasha was just coming back out of her cabin, in obvious pain. Adam slid onto the bridge and started lining up drives, Natasha slid in after him and climbed into her seat breathing heavily. "Just stand by," he told her, and she nodded, grimmacing but lining up her panel.

The men ran up, spears ready, staring at the ship. Most looked awestruck and nervous, but the one in front had his eyes fixed firmly on Adam and Natasha, intelligent and evaluating. The old tattooed woman ran up behind him and began beating him with her stick, but turning slightly without moving his eyes he casually reached behind himself and grabbed it, stopping her. With his other hand he jabbed at the Flower's bow with his spear, tapping it.

Adam could see the girl with the obsidian mirror, standing on the beach where she had been originally, wide-eyed at everything she had caused.

His panel lined up he checked settings and overhead sensors. "Lifting," he announced, and actuated the controls.

The controls hesitated. "Close contact safety protocol. Personnel entrainment," Flower announced calmly.

"Where?" he called to Natasha.

"Maneuver envelope breach," Laseiag called.

Natasha rapidly cycled her flight readouts. "Port bow, above your side," she said, "more than one."

Adam looked up. One of the men was crouched on the hull, looking down at him, uncertain, excited. Big open good-natured face, large healthy teeth. The man grinned, like a lion who was happy to see him.

He heard Helga at the bridge hatch. "I clear hull?" she asked.

Adam's eyes were flying over the villagers, village, and outside terrain. They stopped on the ocean. "No. Natasha give me water depth. Chief Laseiag close-quarters maneuver. Flower bridge command suspend safety protocols. Lifting."

"What?" Natasha started.

"Acknowledged," called Laseiag.

He lifted the boat. Everyone on the beach took a step back, shocked faces, even the ones who had seen it land. The man on the hull suddenly dropped low, spreading his limbs and holding on as best he could, looking excited and seeming to yell happily. Adam carefully gained about 20 feet straight up then slewed hard to port, wafting down the beach and over the water. All the men stared open-mouthed, all the children were jumping up and down and waving and seemed to be yelling, most of the dogs had stopped and simply cocked their heads sideways.

"Outer dorsal airlock open," Flower announced.

Adam swore. Natasha stared at him.

"Helga!"

"Ja!" She moved out.

"Chief Laseiag back!"

"Acknowledged, 30 percent."

The Flower was well over the water. "Yeah! Depth!"

"Unknown, blue water."

Adam rolled the ship into the slew. The world outside rotated, blue sky and blue water swapping places. The native on the roof slid off and fell curving down into the water. Adam halted at inversion. "Maintain," he told Natasha. She responded, "I have the conn."

"Raus!" Helga's voice boomed like an opera-call.

He slid out of the bridge into the corridor, hand on weapon. He came into view and saw Helga with some kind of electric stun tool, points arcing dramatically, at the airlock inner hatch, and Laseiag just behind her, shotgun ready up, both staring down whoever was in the airlock. Helga looked like some ancient warrior goddess, Laseiag looked like an emperor who was about to take an interest in a misbehaving subject. Whoever was in the airlock must have backed out, Adam heard his gurgling yell as he climbed back up and suddenly found himself exiting the Flower's maneuver field and falling "up" into 496's contrary gravity well. Helga reached in and shut the outer airlock hatch, while Laseiag without a word secured his weapon and headed back to engineering.

Helga was standing tall and staring straight ahead. She turned to Adam and dead-panned. "Beautiful man."

Adam laughed as he slid back onto the bridge. "Are they swimming?" he asked Natasha as he surveyed his panel. 90%.

"They appear to be capable."

"Chief Laseiag, maneuver envelope status."

"Clear."

"Take us up," he said to Natasha. She rolled the boat to orientation and lifted for altitude, then settled back to 1G ordinary.

Adam looked back. He could see the girl with the obsidian mirror, and then she was falling behind and gone.

Adam surveyed his panel again, then closed his eyes and took a breath. He lined up the ship's intercomm. "Well ladies and gentlemen, yet another successful contact, or at least no-one died and we don't owe anyone any money. Don't know if we'll get an award for that one but I'm sure we'll remember it. And Helga I know the kids will remember you."

"Did Natasha obtain information regarding the Purdue?" Laseiag intercommed back.

He looked over at her, and she nodded. "Yes, her observation skills really paid off, and she's plotting a course right now," he pointed to her panel and she set to work, "to where the Purdue's robot was seen up and running. After which she is going to bed," she glanced at him but said nothing, "and on landing I think we can call it a day. Helga do we have any eye protection for lasers?"

"I am unaware of such equipment. I will search."

"Chief Laseiag do you have any welding protective equipment that is effective against low-powered lasers?"

"I do not know if it is rated for that, I will have to research."

Natasha passed a set of coordinates to Adam and he found it on the planet map. Under the glacier, riverine, transition terrain.

"You sure about this?"

"No," he glanced at her, "but the description was simple and clear and he referenced a landmark that should identify it positively once it is seen," she answered.

"Helga please check the data I've been given and see if you can tell us anything about it."

After a moment, "Yes. A floral bio-locus, probably a source of food for hunter-gatherers."

Adam nodded at Natasha. "OK, we'll scan for inhabitants of interest before landing." He looked at Natasha. "Long day, the rabbit should be waking up soon, I've got the conn, go lay down."

She didn't argue. "You have the conn." He looked sideways at her. She unbuckled slowly, then carefully eased up, obviously in significant pain and trying to stay off of her left leg entirely.

Adam commed, "Helga to the bridge please."

"I need no help," she said, looking down and not moving.

"Yeah I know, but you'll heal faster if you get it. I'm sorry we let you stay up at all, but events carried us away and you're so tough." He scanned his panel again then put his hand on her forehead. Maybe a little too long. She tolerated it. No fever, at least not yet.

"Call me for landing," she said.

"That's OK, I got it."

"That is a violation of procedure."

He started to say something. "If I need you, I'll call," he finished. He looked her in the eye.

She seemed to accept that.

Helga eased in and helped her out.

"Helga stay with her, make sure she doesn't suddenly come down with rabbit fever or something."

"Yes."

He watched the local star shifting overhead and the mountain approaching.

Almost there.

How to do this ....