He realized there was another reason he had been putting the decision off.
Once I set it off, Creideiki and Gillian are gone. There's no way they'll be able to stop for me. I was to get back to the ship on my own, if at all.
While fighting on the weeds, he had kept hoping to find a working vessel. Anything that could fly him home. But there were only wrecks.
He sat down heavily with his back to the cool metal and drew out the message-bomb.
Do I set it off.
The Seahorse was his plan. Why was he out here, far from Gillian and home, but to find out if it would work?
Across the blood-smeared deck of the alien cruiser, his gaze fell on the Gubru radio.
You know, he told himself, there is one more thing I can do. Even if it means I'll be putting myself right in the middle of a bull's-eye, at least it'll give Jill and the others all I know.
And maybe it'll accomplish more than that.
Tom summoned the strength to stand up one more time. Ah, well, he thought as he staggered to his feet. There's no food anyway. I might as well go out in style.
PART NINE
Ascent
92 ::: Dennie Sah'ot
'It'sss the longer way, Dennie. Are you sure we shouldn't just cut southwest?'
Sah'ot swam alongside the sled, keeping pace fairly easily. Every few strokes he glided smoothly to the surface to blow, then rejoined his companion without breaking stride.
'I know it would be faster, Sah'ot.' Dennie answered without looking up from her sonar display. She was careful to skirt far from any metal-mounds. It was in this area that the killer-weed grew. Toshio's story about his encounter with the deadly plant had terrified her, and she was determined to give the unfamiliar mounds a wide berth.
'Then why are we returning to Streaker's old site before heading sssouth?'
'For several reasons,' Dennie answered. 'First of all, we know this part of the route, having been over it before. And the path from the old site to the Seahorse is straight south, so there's less chance of getting lost.'
Sah'ot snickered, unconvinced. 'And?'
'And this way we'll stand a chance of finding Hikahi. My guess is she may be nosing around the old site about now'
'Did Gillian ask you to look for her?'
'Yeah,' Dennie lied. Actually, she had her own reasons for wanting to find Hikahi.
Dennie was afraid of what Toshio intended to do. It was possible that he meant to delay leaving the island until Streaker's preparations were finished and it was too late for Takkata-Jim to interfere. Of course, by then it would be too late for him to rejoin the ship via sled.
In that case the skiff would be Toshio's only chance. She had to find Hikahi before Gillian did. Gillian might decide to send the skiff after Tom Orley instead of Toshio.
She knew she wasn't thinking things out, and felt a little guilty about her decision. But if she could lie to one dolphin, she could lie to another.
93 ::: Takkata-Jim Metz
The former vice-captain tossed his head and gnashed his teeth as he contemplated the latest sabotage.
'I will string their entrails from the foressst branches!' he hissed. The heavy waldo-arms of his armored spider whined.
Ignacio Metz stared up at the thin, almost invisible wires that formed a tight tracery over the longboat, holding it to the ground. He blinked, trying to follow the trail of fibers into the forest.
Metz shook his head. 'Are you sure you're not overreacting, vice-captain? It seems to me the boy was only trying to make sure we didn't take off before we agreed to.
Takkata-Jim whirled to glare down on the human. 'And have you sssuddenly changed your mind, Doctor Metz? Do you now think we should let the lunatic woman who now controls Streaker send our crewmates out to certain death?'
'N-no, of course not!' Metz shrank back from the dolphin officer's rancor. 'We should persevere, I agree. We must try to make our offer of compromise to the Galactics, but…'
'But what?'
Metz shrugged uncertainly. 'I just don't think you should blame Toshio for doing his job…'
Takkata-Jim's jaws clapped together like a gunshot, and he caused the spider to advance upon Metz, stopping less than a meter from the nervous man.
'You think! You THINK! Of all comedies, that one topsss all! You, who had the arrogance to suppose his wisdom exceeded the councils of Earth — who brought pet monsters amongst an already fragile crew — who deceived himself into thinking all was well, and ignored danger signs when his wisdom was needed by his desperate clients — yes, Ignacio Metz. Tell me how you think-k!' Takkata-Jim snorted in derision.
'B-but we… you and I agreed on nearly everything! My gene-graft Stenos were your most loyal supporters! They're the only ones who stood by you!'
'Your Stenos were not Stenos! They were benighted, erratic creatures who did not belong on thisss mission! I used them as I've used you. But don't class me with your monsters, Metz!'
Stunned, Metz sagged back against the hull of the longboat.
From nearby came the sounds of returning machines. With a withering glance, Takkata-Jim warned the human to be silent. Sreekah-pol's spider pushed through the foliage.
'The fibersss lead to the p-pool,' the fin announced. His Anglic was almost too high-pitched for Metz to follow. 'They go below and wrap around the drill-tree sh- shaft-t.'
'You've cut them?'
'Yesss!' The neo-fin tossed its head.
Takkata-Jim nodded. 'Dr. Metz, please prepare the Kiqui. They are our second greatest trade item, and musst be ready for inspection by whichever race we contact-t.'
'Where are you going?' Metz asked.
'You don't want to know.'
Metz saw Takkata-Jim's determined expression. Then he noted the three Stenos. Their eyes gleamed with an eager madness.
'You've been goading them in Primal!' he gasped. 'I can tell! You've taken these fen over the edge! You're going to make them homicidals!'
Takkata-Jim sighed. 'I will wrestle with my conscience later, Dr. Metz. In the meantime I will do what I must to save the ship and our mission. Since a sane dolphin cannot kill human beings, I needed insane dolphins.'
The three Stenos grinned at Metz. He looked at their eyes in terror, and listened to their feral clickings.
'You're mad!' he whispered.
'No, Dr. Metz,' Takkata-Jim shook his head pityingly. 'You are mad. These fen are mad. But I am only acting as a desperate and dedicated human being might act. Criminal or patriot, that's a matter of opinion, but I am sentient.'
Metz's eyes were wide. 'You can't take back to Earth anyone who knows…' He paled, and turned to run for the airlock.
Takkata-Jim did not even have to give the order. From Sreekah-pol's spider a burst of actinic blue light lanced out. Ignacio Metz sighed and fell to the muddy ground just outside the longboat's hatch. He stared up at Sreekah-pol, like a father betrayed by a son he had doted on.
Takkata-Jim turned to his crew, hiding the nauseated feeling that churned within him.
