Salguodir sat with two men, Nalrahin, in charge of the guards, and Leojem, responsible for keeping troublemakers in line. The three men started each morning sitting together.
The colony got little direction from them. Their attention was preoccupied with their hold on power. They never gave a thought to what the settlement needed.
Salguodir had ordered several Amilikut women to prepare meals for the upper classes, as had been the practice on Tridon. They were to use mainly rations brought down from the New Dawn. However, he did allow them to add a few platters of local food.
The three coup leaders lived in the present. Their top priority was killing the Commander and the events of the last two nights. The loss of two guards had ignited Salguodir's anger. They still didn’t have many details.
“Halkopez! What the Ya^Crocit exactly happened last night?” the mutiny leader grumbled.
“We don’t know exactly. The other guards saw nothing, and the injured guard can’t remember anything.,” Nalrahin replied.
“From now on, every halkopezi guard must remain visible to their backup,” Salguodir barked.
“Consider it done, sir.”
“Are those dratsabinee still trying to get through our lines?” Leojem asked.
“We don’t know what they will do.”
“Crocit! It doesn’t matter. We’ll wait and pick ‘em off,” Salguodir smiled. He was enjoying Nireem's fall from power. “Leojem, how are the Amilikut behaving?”
“They know their place. No problems.”
They know their place. Salguodir savored the words.
“That's what we like. Now, the food situation. Have the Amilikuts hunt more of those big birds with ugly heads. A lot of our people like their meat.”
“No problem!” Leojem answered smartly.
The three talked for another hour about matters of little importance. They mainly enjoyed a hot drink prepared from a powder mixture from Tridon.
Arriving at Settlement Two
Three days earlier, Nireem's small band had joined Nerolnin's patrol. Now, they had crossed the broad river and were approaching the outskirts of the second colony, housed in its cluster of half-dome habitats.
“Ecurben had a perfect place to land. We came down in a forest of tall trees,” Nireem observed.
“He will be excited to see you, sir. He knows you are coming,” the patrol leader replied.
“I am looking forward to rejoining my old friend.”
The trip back had been uneventful, and the wild game was plentiful. Nireem was particularly interested in Drachcirn's method for documenting the route traveled. The patrol's notes made the return easy and would make it easy to create a map showing the location of the two settlements and significant landmarks.
Traveling with Nerolnin had allowed Nireem to experience the vast country around their settlements and opened his mind to their new world. The expansive views, the varied terrain, and the lush vegetation renewed his optimism. And the river near Settlement Two dwarfed any he had seen on Tridon. The abundance everywhere amazed him.
Ecurben walked down to greet Nerolnin's patrol and Nireem's small band. He still had difficulty believing he was meeting with his old commander. Ever since landing, that prospect had seemed remote.
“Commander,” he shouted, running the last short distance.
“Ecurben,” the Commander answered warmly. Both men clasped arms around the other, and the joy each felt was evident to everyone. Eteppon was soon part of the reunion celebration.
“You’ve had a long day and must be tired. We have a place for you and your men. After a short rest, we’ll have a meal and share stories of our landings on Wenobek,” Ecurben said.
He then turned to Nerolnin. “Your patrol has had quite an experience – more than any of us dared think possible! I want to hear all the details tomorrow.”
Nerolnin was proud of his team and buoyed by Ecurben's recognition of them. As he walked to their quarters, he remembered the words: did more than any of us dared think possible.
A few hours later, they all gathered in the community center. A long buffet table held a variety of local food. Most in the settlement had eaten, but plenty remained for Nerolnin's patrol and their guests. The men shared stories and enjoyed being with old friends.
“This meat from those massive horned animals is my favorite,” one of the Commander's men exclaimed.
“We call them T^Nesiwa,” Nerolnin said.
“T^Nesiwa. Yes, T^Nesiwa is a very appropriate name,” another added, grinning.
“I am impressed with your colony,” Nireem said. “Everyone seems to be adapting well to their new home.”
“We were lucky to have landed where natural resources are plentiful. I can’t take much credit. Our people have embraced this place.”
“I have been concerned about the changing seasons. There wasn’t much change on Tridon, but the days are getting shorter and the weather cooler.”
“We’ve observed the same here.”
“One of my biologists observed plants starting to die back. He's worried there could be many days before they bear fruit again,” Nireem continued.
“One of the Amilikut women asked me how long the seasons last here,” Ecurben replied. “I didn’t make the connection with our food supply. Drachcirn studied our planet's orbit. He might be able to answer our questions.”
“That's why I decided to see what our scientists described. I wanted to look at the changes myself. But then the coup happened.”
“Do you know who is responsible for it?”
“Yes. A Mamlaka called Salguodir. He was the leader of a group we identified on the flight. After we landed, they were quiet and didn’t create any problems. I completely forgot them.”
“How much support does he have?”
“His immediate group numbers around 35. Most colonists have always lived under Mamlaka rule, so they accept it. Few realize their survival on this planet depends primarily on them. No one will provide the necessities as they experienced on Tridon.”
“Were there problems before the coup?” Ecurben asked carefully.
“No! We had abolished all class distinctions which bothered the Mamlaka, but overall, there was a positive atmosphere.”
“I’ve done that here. The Amilikut have the most experience surviving on their own.”
“Right now, Ecurben, my priority is regaining control of my settlement. Can you help?”
“Absolutely! I can assemble a force to put down the coup. Then we can address how best to survive here.”
“We should spend tomorrow working out a strategy. Maybe Drachcirn can make some maps of the area,” Nireem suggested.
“I’ll have Drachcirn and a couple of my patrol leaders join us here in the morning. Get some rest.”
The following morning, the group sat around a table in the large half-dome. Ecurben had Drachcirn, Curiden, Nerolnin, and three other patrol leaders with him. Nireem brought Eteppon and the patrol leader who had escorted them when they left their settlement.
“Drachcirn, I understand you and Nerolnin were up last night working on a map showing what we know about the first landing site and the route to it from our settlement. So, let's start with that,” Ecurben directed.
Drachcirn passed out copies of the map and said, “Commander, we need your help with significant terrain features around your settlement.”
Nireem sketched in the wooded areas and the pathways through them. Then, he added the layout of their temporary dome village and the hill and woodlands behind it.
“Here is where Salguodir has likely put his guards. I don’t know if he has any behind the village. He probably has them working in shifts. He also has guards keeping my crew in their quarters.”
“Where did your men make contact with their guards?” Ecurben asked.
“This wooded ravine runs on one side of our shelters. Our men crossed to this wooded barrier at the lower end. One was in the deep grass near the tip here,” Nireem said, pointing to the map.
“Nerolnin's men drew this guard's fire, which exposed his location. There was a second guard further up on the edge of the woods. Hearing rifle fire, he moved down along the tree line. This area is not visible from further up the slope.”
“So, you took out two guards?” Drachcirn asked.
“One was killed. Our standard-issue stun pistol incapacitated the second guard. He’ll recover in a day or two.”
“What weapons do they have?” one of the patrol leaders asked.
“Each descent vehicle had fifteen long-range laser rifles. Salguodir's men found the ones taken off our lander. We recaptured two from the guards,” the Commander replied.
“Any other weapons?”
“They probably took stun pistols from our crew. Some Amilikut brought hunting rifles, but I doubt Salguodir would use them.”
The discussion continued for most of the morning. Much of it was about alternative approaches to the settlement. By noon, they had roughed out a plan, and enthusiasm for the mission was high.