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“Captain, eight more supplicants just arrived,” Sherry informed me at the daily council meeting. “I really don’t know where we’re going to put them all.” She had been voted onto the council by the eight remaining non-council members. She was to replace Tracy, whom we hadn’t heard from in some time. Tracy and Sumiko, among a host of other concerns, weighed on me the most.
“And these eight bring the total to what, thirty-two?” I asked. “I’m glad the autochef can easily reproduce their nutritional gel. It’s one less worry for the already overburdened support system.”
“Thirty-three, and every one of them helping where they can. They aren’t capable of hard physical labor, but their willingness to do whatever they can enhances their welcome. Building materials continue arriving through the teleporter every day,” she confirmed.
“Someone’s not in a pod?” I asked in surprise.
“I’m counting Terse,” she qualified. “Despite being a Minsan, he tends toward seclusion. He hardly ever sleeps, but when he does he just disappears. Even Bea can’t seem to find out where he calls home.”
“Sari, any input on this?” I asked. “I really need to know where I can find him in a hurry if he’s unavailable. I’ve come to rely on him for a lot of things. Maybe too many things,” I added, almost to myself.
“He asked Lars for a dorm room but indicated he’d wait until all the others had living quarters,” she replied. “So I don’t know where he disappears to either.”
Making a note to resolve this right away, I turned to Sam. “You’ll need to get Mica and Jovi to help you work within their societal mores to determine if double-bunking them is feasible. We don’t know if their need to be in quads or pods extends to sleeping arrangements.” He nodded silently.
“I’ve overheard the original four discussing moving in together, which would be really cramped by our standards,” Sari interjected. She had a curious expression on her face which I couldn’t quite put a name on. “It would seem they often sleep intertwined, like puppies.”
My startled expression mirrored those of the others around the table.
“With all that, we’re still not staying ahead of the demand for individual units,” Seamus informed the group. “I’m still not comfortable overseeing construction when Lars is the Chief Engineer.”
“Lars has his hands full with keeping the operational circus of material and people moving in unison. Believe me, he’s glad for you taking the reins of logistics management. Besides, you’ve done a stellar job of it.” I said. “Lars is so far out of his element, it’s scary. Yet he manages to keep everything on schedule. Even Bea seems to have a new-found respect for him.”
Furtive glances passed among the other four, effectively halting my thought process and the meeting. “What am I missing?” I asked. When no one spoke, I repeated myself more distinctly. “What. Am. I. Missing? If something is wrong, I need to be kept apprised. Is the council keeping secrets from the Chair?”
“I wouldn’t say anything is wrong, Captain,” Sari offered with a soft and knowing smile. “Let’s just say respect isn’t the only thing Bea feels for Lars,”
At this last, Seamus flushed slightly but said nothing.
“I got a hint of that the other morning when the storm hit but didn’t think of it as much more than stress management,” I said pan-faced.
“I actually saw Bea smile yesterday,” Sherry offered. “I thought at first she might be having a stroke, it was so unexpected.”
Several others chuckled at her jab.
“Lars has even begun favoring her with gifts from his forge,” Seamus joined in. “I thought she was going to cry the other day when he gave her a copper armband.”
“Will wonders never cease?” I asked no one in particular. “Any ideas on how this may have affected Jovi? And where did he get any extra copper?”
“She no longer has reproductive drives,” Sherry quickly reminded me.
“Just so,” I replied.
Seamus frowned again.
“A few of the locals wear metal jewelry made from raw materials they take straight from ore,” Sam offered. “When all heads turned to him, he shrugged. “It’s such a minor thing, it didn’t seem worthy of the council’s time. There is abundant metal ore in most of the rock formations across the planet. They find it on the surface and beat it out of the ore manually.
He shook his head as he took a breath. “When they have enough for a piece, they shape that manually as well. It’s amazing work for having such rudimentary tools. Two of the supplicant pods are just such jewelers and Lars seemed acutely interested in their skill. Perhaps that’s where he obtained the extra material. Sherry tells us it’s almost identical in molecular makeup to copper.”
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WE MOVED ON, BUT WHEN we finished I asked Seamus to remain. “Please explain your reaction to Bea and Lars’ involvement. Also Sherry’s comment about reproductive drives,” I asked without preamble. I walked to the sidebar of the common room and poured us both a shot of his favorite Scotch. Despite our hectic schedule, Seamus had still managed to set up his distillery and was producing everyone’s favorite alcohol.
“We still have no clue on Sumi’s status. We don’t even know if she’s still in the system,” he ended on a choking hiss.
“Well at least on that part, you’re mistaken,” I offered. This prompted a jerk of his head as he locked his burning gaze with mine. “I’ve asked Jovi and Mica to inquire of all supplicants as they arrive. I too have a vested interest in knowing what’s going on with CS. There was news regarding Sumi and Tracy.”
As his countenance grew ever more fierce, his silence continued. I placed my hand on his shoulder and smiled. “Take a deep breath before you explode.” He did so and relaxed minutely.
“The last group of eight had actual contact with Tracy two days ago,” I shared. “She’s conducting large-scale discussions on Planetary Energy Absorption, as they call it. Apparently, she’s teaching them how to draw energy from the planet’s surface. In so many things, they really are the ignorant race.”
“And Sumi?” he insisted softly.
“A male member of those two pods recalls hearing a welcome return to one of the assimilants,” I informed him. “I didn’t want to discuss this in council, but none of ours have returned. As Tracy is already there, that only leaves Sumi.”
The look of relief which washed across his face was transforming, and the wry smile completed it. “So, when do we rescue her?” he asked yet again.