people. That is my path. What is your path?”
Kris stared with hard determination into the camera as Nelly finished translating. Behind Kris, on the screen, ship after ship once again blew up. First the base ship, then each of the three ships that had attacked them yesterday. The destruction flashed over and over again until the producer chirped something that must have meant cut, and the camera stopped.
The producer said something to Straight Tongue.
S HE’S ASKING HIM IF HE HAS ANY WORDS TO ADD TO THIS THAT THEY SHOULD RECORD. H E’S SAYING THAT HE IS SPEECHLESS, AND THEY CAN LET HIS SILENCE AS THE SHIPS WERE HUNTED BEHIND HIM SPEAK FOR HIM.
The three reporters didn’t say a thing as they gathered up their gear. Two smartly dressed and armed Marines waited at the door of the interview room and led them off to their return flight.
The camera operator eyed the Marines and their guns, and started his camera rolling again, capturing the way the Marines moved both gracefully and with purpose in zero gee.
“I think we have just given the Association of Associations, and flocks of other Alwans, a whole lot to think about,” Granny said.
“Now, Kris, Jack, you’ve shown me your setup. It’s only fair for me to show you mine. I should think with three more ships vanishing without a trace, any alien riffraff would take some time off to look at their hole cards, if they have any. From the look of all the data Nelly captured for the boffins, I’d guess they’re going to be busy for a day or twelve. Come, let me show you what my people have done.”
8
Kris checked with Captain Drago. He insisted he had everything under control and all but shooed Kris off his bridge. Besides, with the
Wasp
in microgravity, he needed to rotate his crew dirtside to avoid muscle loss. It would be best if Kris checked the lay of the land, assured there was a good supply of beer, and looked into the local attitude toward Sailors who might get a bit rowdy with the opposite sex. And it wouldn’t just be the local womenfolk who had to worry. The
Wasp
’s crew was forty-three percent women, who would be checking out the local menfolk.
Kris asked the skipper to duck into his in-space cabin for a brief consult. “Any suggestion about what we do if a hostile ship jumps into the system?” she asked when they were alone.
“If there’s just one of them, I’ll recall the crew, and we’ll fight it out, maybe put Alwa’s moon to good use. Two, I guess we could give it a try if you said so. Three or more, Your Highness, and I strongly suggest we run. Maybe they’ll chase us and leave the folks dirtside alone. This frigate is a dandy craft, Kris, but there’s a limit to what we can do.”
Kris sighed. “That was pretty much what I figured, but I wanted to hear it from you.”
“We’ve got buoys on the far side of both of the jumps into this system. We will not be surprised. Go ashore, Princess, and try, for once, to have fun.”
Thus Kris and Jack, Abby and Cara, and a platoon of Marines that just happened to include Sergeant Bruce, headed for the planet below. Penny asked to be included, along with a Musashi lieutenant who was working closely with her on intel. Amanda Kutter wanted to start working on her study of the Alwan economy and asked that Dr. Jacques la Duke join her. His area of study was anthropology, and she strongly suggested that their work would go hand in hand.
That the two of them were hand in hand drew a grin from Granny Rita. H AVE I TOLD YOU FOLKS I ALSO DO WEDDINGS?
G RANNY, BEHAVE YOURSELF.
I AM, DAUGHTER, YOU’RE THE ONE WITH A SHARP STICK UP YOUR BUTT.
Kris decided respect for Granny’s age required she let her have the last word. Several more boffins, mostly biologists but also sociologists and geologists, added themselves to the longboat.
Kris had met Granny Rita when she arrived on the
Wasp
. She’d looked much the worse for the ride up and Kris had rushed the old gal to sick bay. There the docs had
Kris stared with hard determination into the camera as Nelly finished translating. Behind Kris, on the screen, ship after ship once again blew up. First the base ship, then each of the three ships that had attacked them yesterday. The destruction flashed over and over again until the producer chirped something that must have meant cut, and the camera stopped.
The producer said something to Straight Tongue.
S HE’S ASKING HIM IF HE HAS ANY WORDS TO ADD TO THIS THAT THEY SHOULD RECORD. H E’S SAYING THAT HE IS SPEECHLESS, AND THEY CAN LET HIS SILENCE AS THE SHIPS WERE HUNTED BEHIND HIM SPEAK FOR HIM.
The three reporters didn’t say a thing as they gathered up their gear. Two smartly dressed and armed Marines waited at the door of the interview room and led them off to their return flight.
The camera operator eyed the Marines and their guns, and started his camera rolling again, capturing the way the Marines moved both gracefully and with purpose in zero gee.
“I think we have just given the Association of Associations, and flocks of other Alwans, a whole lot to think about,” Granny said.
“Now, Kris, Jack, you’ve shown me your setup. It’s only fair for me to show you mine. I should think with three more ships vanishing without a trace, any alien riffraff would take some time off to look at their hole cards, if they have any. From the look of all the data Nelly captured for the boffins, I’d guess they’re going to be busy for a day or twelve. Come, let me show you what my people have done.”
8
Kris checked with Captain Drago. He insisted he had everything under control and all but shooed Kris off his bridge. Besides, with the
Wasp
in microgravity, he needed to rotate his crew dirtside to avoid muscle loss. It would be best if Kris checked the lay of the land, assured there was a good supply of beer, and looked into the local attitude toward Sailors who might get a bit rowdy with the opposite sex. And it wouldn’t just be the local womenfolk who had to worry. The
Wasp
’s crew was forty-three percent women, who would be checking out the local menfolk.
Kris asked the skipper to duck into his in-space cabin for a brief consult. “Any suggestion about what we do if a hostile ship jumps into the system?” she asked when they were alone.
“If there’s just one of them, I’ll recall the crew, and we’ll fight it out, maybe put Alwa’s moon to good use. Two, I guess we could give it a try if you said so. Three or more, Your Highness, and I strongly suggest we run. Maybe they’ll chase us and leave the folks dirtside alone. This frigate is a dandy craft, Kris, but there’s a limit to what we can do.”
Kris sighed. “That was pretty much what I figured, but I wanted to hear it from you.”
“We’ve got buoys on the far side of both of the jumps into this system. We will not be surprised. Go ashore, Princess, and try, for once, to have fun.”
Thus Kris and Jack, Abby and Cara, and a platoon of Marines that just happened to include Sergeant Bruce, headed for the planet below. Penny asked to be included, along with a Musashi lieutenant who was working closely with her on intel. Amanda Kutter wanted to start working on her study of the Alwan economy and asked that Dr. Jacques la Duke join her. His area of study was anthropology, and she strongly suggested that their work would go hand in hand.
That the two of them were hand in hand drew a grin from Granny Rita. H AVE I TOLD YOU FOLKS I ALSO DO WEDDINGS?
G RANNY, BEHAVE YOURSELF.
I AM, DAUGHTER, YOU’RE THE ONE WITH A SHARP STICK UP YOUR BUTT.
Kris decided respect for Granny’s age required she let her have the last word. Several more boffins, mostly biologists but also sociologists and geologists, added themselves to the longboat.
Kris had met Granny Rita when she arrived on the
Wasp
. She’d looked much the worse for the ride up and Kris had rushed the old gal to sick bay. There the docs had
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