ROMULUS (The Innerworld Affairs Series, Book 1) by Marilyn Campbell
Authors: Marilyn Campbell
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of any kind will not be tolerated.
"We have more leisure time than you may be accustomed to. You will be expected to make good use of that time as well. I am sure you will be pleasantly surprised by the variety of games and energy outlets available to you."
The chief administrator hesitated, taking a moment to look at each person directly... except her . All through his speech, he had pointedly avoided meeting her eyes.
The faces on each side of Aster revealed a combination of bewilderment and tension. Fidgeting in her chair, Aster felt she might burst if she did not speak her mind soon, but she had no idea what to say.
"You may work in whatever field appeals to you. Each of you will have the opportunity to discuss what might be suitable with a career counselor. If training or education is required, that will be provided.
"To begin with, you will receive a supply of food and clothing, free of charge, and an entry-level apartment will be made available to you, prepaid for two months. You should adjust to our system of economics without much difficulty."
Rom's earlier resolve not to look at her disintegrated instantly when Aster ceased her nervous movement and sat forward in her chair. Her expression changed from pure defiance to mild curiosity. It occurred to him that he may have discovered Miss Mackenzie's touchstone.
"The main difference between our systems is that we do not use hard currency. An accounting file will be opened for each of you. You receive credits to your account for working or attending school and debits when you make a purchase. You cannot spend more than you have. Ten percent of your credits is automatically transferred to the Car-Tem Provincial Account. In return, you are provided with education, medical care, utilities and public facilities. If you have any questions about how all this works, I will be glad to discuss it further at a later time."
Romulus risked one more glance at Aster to make sure she had heard his offer but she was intently studying a spot on the table in front of her. Opening his mouth to continue, he received a shock. He could not remember where he had left off. This had never happened to him before. What was it about that woman? Rather than reveal his problem, he skipped to the question-and-answer segment of his presentation.
"I will now try to answer some of your questions. I would appreciate your introducing yourselves first." He nodded to the man seated at his left. "Go ahead, please."
"I'm Johnny Basiglio. This is my wife, Betty. I was the captain on The Baronette. I'm just so glad to be alive, I don't know what to ask about first. How about those three guys—the pirates—what happened to them?"
"After you arrived, we reviewed a replay of the incidents that had occurred on your ship during the previous twenty-four hours." When several sets of eyebrows shot up questioningly, he explained, "The process involves picking up images left behind on matter before they dissipate. At any rate, one of the criminals was dead long before the accident. His body and that of another crew member had been... previously removed from the ship. The other two were dispatched to the Rehabilitation Clinic in a distant province. They will be dealt with according to our laws."
Paul Feinstein broke in. "I certainly don't want to be accused of being a wet blanket but it seems like you're taking our acceptance a little too much for granted. We have three grandchildren back home whom you're telling us we'll never see again. It's easy for these younger people here to start a new life but we don't want to finish our days in a strange place."
"Please forgive my husband's blustering, Mister Romulus. We're Sheila and Paul Feinstein and we really are grateful that you came to our rescue. But, you see, I have terminal cancer. Paul was upset at the thought of living without me in our own world, among our family. Isn't there some way he could get back... after I'm gone maybe? He would never tell a soul
"We have more leisure time than you may be accustomed to. You will be expected to make good use of that time as well. I am sure you will be pleasantly surprised by the variety of games and energy outlets available to you."
The chief administrator hesitated, taking a moment to look at each person directly... except her . All through his speech, he had pointedly avoided meeting her eyes.
The faces on each side of Aster revealed a combination of bewilderment and tension. Fidgeting in her chair, Aster felt she might burst if she did not speak her mind soon, but she had no idea what to say.
"You may work in whatever field appeals to you. Each of you will have the opportunity to discuss what might be suitable with a career counselor. If training or education is required, that will be provided.
"To begin with, you will receive a supply of food and clothing, free of charge, and an entry-level apartment will be made available to you, prepaid for two months. You should adjust to our system of economics without much difficulty."
Rom's earlier resolve not to look at her disintegrated instantly when Aster ceased her nervous movement and sat forward in her chair. Her expression changed from pure defiance to mild curiosity. It occurred to him that he may have discovered Miss Mackenzie's touchstone.
"The main difference between our systems is that we do not use hard currency. An accounting file will be opened for each of you. You receive credits to your account for working or attending school and debits when you make a purchase. You cannot spend more than you have. Ten percent of your credits is automatically transferred to the Car-Tem Provincial Account. In return, you are provided with education, medical care, utilities and public facilities. If you have any questions about how all this works, I will be glad to discuss it further at a later time."
Romulus risked one more glance at Aster to make sure she had heard his offer but she was intently studying a spot on the table in front of her. Opening his mouth to continue, he received a shock. He could not remember where he had left off. This had never happened to him before. What was it about that woman? Rather than reveal his problem, he skipped to the question-and-answer segment of his presentation.
"I will now try to answer some of your questions. I would appreciate your introducing yourselves first." He nodded to the man seated at his left. "Go ahead, please."
"I'm Johnny Basiglio. This is my wife, Betty. I was the captain on The Baronette. I'm just so glad to be alive, I don't know what to ask about first. How about those three guys—the pirates—what happened to them?"
"After you arrived, we reviewed a replay of the incidents that had occurred on your ship during the previous twenty-four hours." When several sets of eyebrows shot up questioningly, he explained, "The process involves picking up images left behind on matter before they dissipate. At any rate, one of the criminals was dead long before the accident. His body and that of another crew member had been... previously removed from the ship. The other two were dispatched to the Rehabilitation Clinic in a distant province. They will be dealt with according to our laws."
Paul Feinstein broke in. "I certainly don't want to be accused of being a wet blanket but it seems like you're taking our acceptance a little too much for granted. We have three grandchildren back home whom you're telling us we'll never see again. It's easy for these younger people here to start a new life but we don't want to finish our days in a strange place."
"Please forgive my husband's blustering, Mister Romulus. We're Sheila and Paul Feinstein and we really are grateful that you came to our rescue. But, you see, I have terminal cancer. Paul was upset at the thought of living without me in our own world, among our family. Isn't there some way he could get back... after I'm gone maybe? He would never tell a soul
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