The Commander's communicator sounded. A glance told him it was the radio room. The operator had received a message from Samohtin's patrol and wanted him to come up.
Walking inside the half-dome, Nireem asked, “Did they find the missing patrol?”
“Yes, sir! You better look at the complete message.”
Nireem sat in front of the computer screen where the message was displayed. He could see it was longer than most.
Samohtin Reporting –Day fifteen. We have just completed climbing out of the large bowel, where we lost all radio contact. We have found the missing patrol and have the survivors with us.
Seeing the word, survivors, caused the Commander's pulse to quicken. His worst fear flooded his mind. He had to force himself to continue reading.
Two men attempted to cross rapids in the river, which swept them away. Their teammates recovered one man's body. The other is missing and presumed dead. The accident occurred the day after their last radio contact. They lost their communicator in the accident.
The rapidly flowing river winds across the terrain until it plunges into the bowl I described in my previous message. The men in the first patrol then descended into the bowl to search for their missing team member. That's where we found them.
We have gathered some rock samples and pulled several cores. We are now headed back. The going will be slow.
Nireem reread the message. It was a terrible accident, but not his worst fear. The description of the area and the river surprised him. When they returned, they could sort out the details. He was thankful they had only lost two men.
Then he realized Samohtin never mentioned the lost men's names. He thanked the radio operator, told him to tell no one about the message, and left.
He felt relieved, but the tension from waiting had exhausted him. Sheer fortitude had kept him going. He just wanted to go to his shelter and relax. Despite years of command, the loss of his men still hurt. He decided to say nothing about the accident until everyone was back.
Walking down the hillside, he had little interest in the activity and those that greeted him. He smiled, waved, and kept walking like he had someplace to be. Fortunately, no one wanted to talk or register a complaint. Deep down, he sensed there must be more than Samohtin's terse report.
Then the Commander stopped. He decided to find the scientists – anything to get his mind off the fate of the lost men. He knew they were always in their lab puttering with something.
“D^Lanoden, What's new in the lab,” Nireem said as he entered.
Looking up, D^Lanoden took off his safety glasses. The look on his face told the Commander the scientist had news. Usually, he looked irritated by the interruption.
“Sir. You wouldn’t believe it. Do you remember asking about manufacturing food here as we had on Tridon?”
“Yes,” Nireem acknowledged cautiously.
“After I told you I had a recipe, I started experimenting, but the ones I made weren’t nutritious. Salguodir's guys were trying to do the same thing, and they came to me. Two of them had worked in food plants, and they could describe the process. But they didn’t know many details and the purpose of each step. From their descriptions, I figured it out. The food plants made additives to enhance nutrition, and …”
“What's the bottom line,” the Commander interrupted, frustrated by the long-winded explanation.
“We can make food bars with all the protein and carbohydrates we need!” D^Lanoden answered proudly. “Now we are working on several different forms and flavors.”
“Great work. We should have a supply for a food reserve. Do we need to collect anything special?”
The scientist hesitated and then said, “No. Salguodir's men are getting what we need.”
“What are they getting?”
“I would rather not say.”
“Why so secret about the ingredients?”
“Well, they might discourage some from enjoying the food.,” the scientist said mysteriously.
“OK. Tell Retlawon at N^Watvor about how you are making these food bars. It's one more step to being self-sufficient. And thank Salguodir and his men for me. I appreciate their help.” Nireem figured the recipe would leak out.
“Will do.”
“Samohtin's patrol will be back in a few days. They found the missing men and will have plenty for you to analyze. How's Solracin's kiln project?”
“Very well. Solracin can melt common metals and is working with one of the maintenance guys to build a kiln to heat bigger pieces.”
“Good work! Let me know when you have analyzed the latest samples. We need metals and sulfur.” the Commander reminded him. Then he left.
Near evening, Nireem got word that several attempts to contact N^Watvor had failed. Their radio wasn’t responding. Even when answering automatically, it left a “message received” reply if the transmission came from an assigned frequency.
The Missing Patrol Members Return
Seven days later, Samohtin's patrol returned with the missing men. He had called ahead to say they would arrive early afternoon. Nireem, Gergin, and Nevetsin paced nervously at the meeting place near the shallow river.
Each man had different thoughts on his mind. Nevetsin was looking forward to the completion of another successful mission. He was sure they would bring plenty for the lab to analyze.
The Commander was looking forward to the return of the missing men and marking an end to days in fear of an imminent threat to his community.
Gergin, always the navigator, was eager to see how this patrol had extended the boundaries of their known world on Wenobek. He maintained a master map that illustrated all the landmarks and features of the areas explored.
The three didn’t have to wait long to see Samohtin and the returning group following along the river's shore. Two men had a pole on their shoulders to carry their fallen comrade. Others were carrying tubes filled with core samples. Nevetsin immediately understood why Samohtin had mentioned the need for frequent rest stops.
When the patrol spotted the three waiting for them, it seemed to spark a burst of energy to cover the remaining distance. The Commander walked forward to greet them and soon was helping to pull packs off weary backs. His greetings, shoulder hugs, and expression left none in doubt of his concern for each man.
Nevetsin walked with Samohtin, congratulating him for the patrol's success. Gergin stood back and watched, admiring his commander's instinct for bonding with his men. It was why his crew would follow him anywhere. Finally, still breathing hard, the patrol was resting on the ground.
“To those returning, I reassure you that we understand you are taking a risk each time you go out. Our knowledge of this planet and the dangers you may encounter is limited to a few days’ travel from here. I know the pain of losing a brother. We will recognize their sacrifice.“
He paused and cleared his throat. “Samohtin, you and your men have done everything we asked. We thank your team and recognize their effort. I look forward to hearing more details. Rest here and then take the samples to the lab.
We will have a memorial service for your fallen team members tomorrow and the burial of the one returned. Tonight we’ll eat in the community center. You can tell us more then.”
“Sir.” Samohtin rose to speak. “Two things. First, Could we bury him today? It's been several hot days and….” He couldn’t finish the sentence, but everyone got the point.
“Oh. Understand. Yes. Gergin, help them find a suitable place in our small burial ground. You’re right. We don’t have facilities to keep him. We’ll still do a memorial tomorrow.”
“Sir. There is something else you should know about.”
“Go on, Samohtin.”
“Sir. When we were in the bowl looking for a place to take a core, we found where the river had cut deeply through the surrounding land. The eroded face showed distinct layers, and one jumped out. It was black and about a forearm's length thick. It looked like the layer the scientists were talking about. We decided to take samples from this layer. And we found an object buried between it and the layer below.”
“Yes,” the Commander interrupted.
“Sir. We brought it back. We think it's a drone. It used advanced technology!”
Nireem, Nevetsin, and Gergin stood in shock. Engineers on Tridon had developed drones for surveillance, and the Commander had used them on space missions. The word, drone, relighted Nireem's worst nightmare.
“Take it to the lab. Have them examine it and tell us what they think,” Nireem ordered. Samotin had raised the prospect of his worst fear -- an advanced culture that could wipe out their fragile existence.
“Will do!”
The Commander nodded to Nevetsin and Gergin, indicating the meeting was over. Then, the three started up the slope, walking between the rows of log shelters.
The Commander pondered what he had just heard. It dawned on him why dating the black layer was important. Then he recalled the tiny metal screw found in the clay when they were building shelters. D^Lanoden had told him only an advanced civilization could have made it.
But it was small and didn’t make an impression. It was barely the size of a finger. A drone is complicated and requires many technologies. In minutes, Nireem had gone from joy and relief to first-hand evidence of a technologically advanced civilization.