Terry shrugged.“Neither did I until we needed to.”
Sushil gave him anappraising look. “You figured this out in the last hour?”
“He’s got aknack for this kind of thing,” Frank said, enjoying the blush theyoung man was trying to hide. Poor guy’s not used tofolks noticing that he’s got potential.
“Well,” Terrycleared his throat. “We can follow along with Vikram and see forourselves what happened.” He started the playback.
They were treated to aview of hard work, mostly. Vikram was planting the saplings at apretty good pace for a teenager. Terry skipped forward a few timesuntil they found themselves moving into the denser trees where nocoffee would be planted.
At first, their viewshowed mostly forest floor, confirming his story about looking forevidence. After a few minutes, the view came up level and startedmoving deeper into the area of the jungle where he was eventuallyfound.
The view abruptlyrotated, making everyone in the kitchen reflexively grab onto thestone surface of the island. They watched the patches of sky betweenthe leaves of the canopy for roughly fifteen minutes before Trisha’shelmet appeared above him.
“Nothing happened,”Terry said, sounding disappointed, as if he’d let Vikram down.
“What was thatsound,” Trisha asked. “Can you go back to just before I appear?”
Terry reset the view.
Just beforeTrishaappeared, they could hear her calling out to him, her feet runningover, Frank’s warning to Terry and then…
“Trisha’slast footsteps sounded different,” Frank agreed.
“So he didfind something!” Terry exulted.
Debrief
Babilim Station
Gabriella shutdown her engines, hoping it wouldn’t be the last time. Shecould see her aunt standing inside the main door to the lessornate space that servedas their hangar atBabilim. Time forthe reckoning...
The canopy flowedout of the way and she climbed down. Hotdog strolledover from his own fighter, which sat creaking and hissing next tohers.
“Got your headon straight?” heasked her.
“Yeah, I think I donow.”
He nodded. “Let’sgo find out.”
They walked over toLuna, Gabriella clearing her mind of all the conversations she’dhad in her head. Over the last two days at the jungle house, she’dhad plenty of time to work out where she’d gone wrong.
She came to a stop infront of Luna.
“What do youhave to say for yourself?”Luna asked.
Gabriella took a deepbreath. “Hotdog’s job is to turn your orders into a manageablepicture for his flight. Mine is to follow his orders.
“When I ignoreorders, I create problems in a part of that picture that I don’teven know about. I put Hotdogin a place where he might have had to kill innocent people to protectme.”
“So, would youever do that again?” Luna asked.
Gabriellawas on the verge of saying ‘no’, but she caught herself,uncertain. “I think that,sometimes, you see something that’s too time-sensitive to pass upthe chain but that’s not what happened, in my case, and…”
Dumbass! You almost had this aced,she told herself, scratching her elbow nervously. Might aswell finish it now. “Anyway,I don’t have the experience, yet, to make that kind of call.”
Luna looked down at herfor a long time in silence. Just when Gabriella was on the verge ofasking for a verdict, her aunt finally spoke.
“You’re backin the air but we’re gonna be watching you like a hawk from now on;got it?”
Gabriella wanted toshout but she caught herself and just nodded.
“Alright, let’s getto the briefing room. Your new boyfriend has a lot to tell us.”
They were using a largeroom near the hangar. Scorch-marks on the floor showed where they’dremoved furniture that was too tall for Humans. A nanite-basedconference table sat in the middle of the space and there wereseveral people sitting around it.
Scylla sat at themiddle on the far side, along with the young erstwhile sacrificialvictim. Gabriella gave him a wave but he simply respondedwith a polite nod.
Of course he won’t recognize you, idiot! Youhad your helmet closed the whole time.
Luna sat oppositeScylla, leaving Gabriella to wonder if there was an order to whereattendees should seat themselves.
Am I supposed to take a spot in the corner as ajunior member of the squadron or a seat at the table as the pilotthat collected this alien? Sheglanced at Luna, who was no help.
Screw it. I’m gonna sit next to her as secondin line. It occurred to her asshe sat, leaving it to the nanites stationed in the room to provide aseat, that sometimes authority was given to those who assumed it.
She resisted the urgeto grimace at the expected reprimand but none came. Luna knew she wasthere and didn’t chase her off to stand in the corner.
Gleb came in,along with Sulak. He gaveGabriella’s shoulder an affectionate squeeze on his way past, thensat next to his wife. Sulak moved to sit next to Scylla.
Adelina arrivedjust ahead of Eth and they were the last of the attendees. Somuch for assuming authority, shethought. I’m either here as third in line or as the pilotwho found this guy so, either way, I don’t have to fight for aspace at the table.
“That’severyone,” Luna said. “First,the basic details. Dentrat tells us that his people, the Trellans,engage in low-level conflict with the Mictan in order to procuresacrificial… candidates. Both sides use their prisoners to ensure abountiful rainfall for their crops.”
“How the hells isthat at thing?” Adelina blurted.
“It works,”Dentrat told her, indignant andheavily accented. “Ourcrops have never failed us…”
“Because the wholesystem is automated,” Adelina insisted.
“You refer tothe food of the gods?” he asked. “The food that gets harvested bytheir immortal servants?” He shook his head. “We dare notinterfere!”
“But…”
“We’re nothere to argue religion,” Luna interceded. “Wegave Dentrat training in Imperial Standard so we could talk to him.It’s not for us to turn their entire society on its head.”
“But…” Adelinasat back, frowning at her sister. “They’re killing each otherover rain!”
“They are,” Lunaagreed. “And I once saw a man get killed in San Diego over a pairof headphones. Are we so superior?”
Adelina threw up herhands and muttered something under her breath.
“How many of you arethere, Dentrat?” Gleb asked.
“Perhaps fourtens of hundreds?” The alien shrugged.
Gleb nodded. “And theMictan?”
“A little less,we think,” Dentrat frowned. “We never give exact numbers at theGrandCouncilso we doubt the Mictan are any more forthcoming.”
“The Grand Council?”
Dentrat nodded. “Everyfour tens of days we hold a council between the
