Reunion,, Part 4 · Part 1

Reunion,, Part 4 · Part 1 (1/2)
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Reunion 143 / 0918

"So," Garth said, looking around at his three companions, "What is there to do on Pendor on a day like this?"

Furry shrugged noncommitally, but the other two animatedly began making lists. Skii said, "There's skiing, sailing, swimming, flying. I could do any one of those. What are you interested in? Any places you want to go?"

"Well…" Garth concentrated for a moment. "Nickolai gave me a long list of things he did the last time he was here on Pendor. Like visiting the Rowan, watching the Tangent Arc hardware practices, maybe going to Backwater or Rhysh–"

Kiza cut him off. "I am not going to Rhysh."

"Okay, maybe not Rhysh," Garth agreed, "But I would like to see some of the places around here. I'd like to go sailing in Parma, for instance. That's something Nickolai never got to do. I'd like to watch sunset on Pandora, since that's what it exists for." He paused for a moment. "Actually, no offense Kiza, but I would like to go to Rhysh."

"I'll stay home that day."

"No problem," Skii replied, his grin splitting from ear to ear. "I've been there. It's… different, but nothing too horrible is out in the open. I'd enjoy taking Garth there."

"Yes, I'm sure you would," Kiza replied, returning his grin. "What else, Garth?"

"Oh, I don't know. Rocchodain, Alias… I'm sure you all have local favorites."

"We do," Skii replied, "But I don't know how many of mine would appeal to you."

"Some might," Garth said. "You can always suggest them and I can say if I want to or not. Oh, that's right. One other thing. I want to see a play."

"A play?" Skii asked dubiously.

"Yeah," Garth said. "I want to see something done with Pendorian actors. I think Uncia doing Othello or Felinzi doing Cats or Tindals doing Shibatsu, something like that."

"Ah," Skii said. "You want to see a Terran performance with Pendorian actors." He scratched under his chin for a moment. "Ken is very fond of those, although he has a taste for those awful Greek plays. You could ask him. Or Dave. Dave?"

"Thank you for remembering me, Skii," the AI answered calmly. "Yes, in fact, Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing will be performing at the Carmeloch Theatre for the next two weeks. Henry The Fifth is showing at the D'Tangent theatre. No Othello, sorry. Other performances include a Jesus Christ, Superstar, Carthage, and Not the Worm Ourobouros, but they're at smaller theatres."

"There," Skii said. "You've got an entire collection to choose from. I'm sure if you want an different play, Dave can find a video archive somewhere."

"Guaranteed," the AI replied. "In fact, AI Webster Masters has a comprehensive library of Shakespeare productions performed on Pendor over the last two centuries."

"Thank you, Dave," Skii said. "You're getting faster."

"I do try," the AI replied.

"Anyway, that's just the beginning," Skii said. "I'm sure we can find more than enough stuff to fill your entire month. Ever gone mountain climbing?"

"Isn't that a little dangerous?"

"Nah, we'll give you a gravitics harness in case you fall. It's not a problem of getting to the top or falling off, it's how many times do you fall off. I never fall off. Kiza?"

"Huh?"

"What about you? Did you have any ideas?"

"Well, I'd really like to go sailing. I've never done that before. But you're the one with the sailboat, I assume."

"Yep," Skii said. "I think I can teach you two how to handle the mid-tri." He glanced up into the air, looking at nothing in particular. "Dave," he said, "Can you call Ken for me?"

After a few seconds pause, Ken's voice came back through empty air. "What can I do for you, kiddo?"

"Gran, can I take the Succubus out?"

"Sure, if you bring it back in one piece. There's no cell on board, you'll have to swim one out yourself."

"No problem. Thanks!"

"See ya. Have fun, you four!" An audible >click< terminated the conversation.

"Three," Furry said, standing. She hadn't said a word during the entire conversation, and her one spoken word suddenly had everyone's attention.

"What?" Skii asked.

"No offense, Skii, but with Nickolai gone, I really don't feel like doing anything. I think I'll stay here and study until he gets back."

"That's not for a week! At least!"

"I'll do. Maybe I'll feel better tomorrow or something. I don't know. Anyway, you guys go enjoy yourself. I don't want to be a pressor field on your sunny day. I'll see you guys later." She slowly walked away.

"If you want to join us, Dave will know where we are!" Skii shouted "I know," Furry replied, not quite so loudly and certainly less exuberantly.

Skii stood up slowly and said, "Well, that's that. Come on, you two. Grab everything you'll need for an overnighter, too. I'll get the powercell and the waterproof bags. Dave, is there food in the Succubus?

"I'm afraid not, Skii. You'll need a complete complement. The burners have been replaced with electric, however, so you will not need propane."

"Ring for small favors," Skii groaned, heading down the stairs with the two in tow.

A confusing ten minutes later, Garth found himself standing on the beach next to Skii and a brown cargo-net full of stuff, waiting for Kiza to show up. "I hope she doesn't get seasick," Skii said.

"I hope I don't," Garth replied.

"I hope you don't either," Skii replied. Kiza came running down the beach with a single, small bag slung over her shoulder. "I brought what I thought I would need. Just an overnight, right?"

"I hope that's all we're going to be doing," Skii replied, taking her bag and putting into another, waterproof bag. He tied the bag to the cargo net. "Okay, you see that boat over there? That's where we're going. It's not that far, believe me. It looks like it, but I bet both of you can swim pretty well, right?"

"I can," Kiza replied. Garth just nodded.

"Okay, good enough. Now wait until I get to the boat and give you a signal. Then push this net in and I'll pull it to the boat. Then just swim out to the boat yourselves. Okay, here I go!" Skii jumped into the water and began swimming. They watched as he disappeared out of sight, a line of rope following him from behind the net packed with stuff.

Skii reached the boat and signaled them. They pushed the net into the water, and he began hauling on the rope. They followed the cargo. Garth found himself enjoying the swim, the lankiness that he usually saw in his arms giving him the kind of power he needed to keep up with Kiza. Kiza, for her own part, swam like the Marten she was, a relative to Otters and other waterborne creatures. She did reach the boat first, but Garth had to admit to himself that he felt good about how well he'd managed to keep up.

"So," Skii said. "Give me five minutes and I'll have the shower rigged up and ready to go. First, help me pull the cargo onto the rear deck."

With six hands pulling at the rope, the cargo came up over the side easily, although a few times as it threatened to roll Skii snarled incoherently. "If that thing puts a hole in her, Ken will never forgive me."

"Has that ever happened?" Garth asked.

"There's a first time for everything," Skii answered. He pulled open the cargo nets and pulled out a cylinder of stainless steel with a blue, screw-on plastic top. "Power. Be right back." He walked around to the front of the boat. Garth heard the snapping of latches and the creaking of hinges and then he heard Skii's voice echo hollowly, as if from a cave. "Got it!"

Garth looked around. He and Kiza stood on the rear deck of a white trimaran sailboat, about eleven meters in length. A cabin sat right in the middle of the trimaran, rising less than a full meter from the rest of the boat. The boat was painted white. An outboard motor was attached between the center and starboard (Garth was proud of himself for remembering that word) hulls, and a thick power cable held down with half-circle clamps ran over the slat and down into the cabin.

On the top of the cabin Garth saw a bundle labeled "Inflatable raft" and an electrically powered pump.

"Okay," Skii's voice said confidently. "We've got a fitted Yohan sail and jib. Power is on-line, as is our remote networking gear. We're ready to move. Garth, Kiza, which one of you wants to go swimming?"

Both indicated they would. Skii tossed Kiza a set of goggles. "Here," he said. "Go find the anchor and pull us loose, would you? It's not more then six meters here. Well, maybe seven."

Kiza jumped into the water and disappeared. Skii smiled at Garth. "When she gets the anchor loose we have to pull it up fast. Then, handsome, you get to help me rig the sails. When Kiza gets back we'll have her drop the engine while we put up the jib and mainsail. It's really not that hard, either. Come on."

The boat lurched slightly. "Pull!" Skii shouted, hauling at the anchor line. They began hauling fast and soon had the anchor on the front deck. "Kiza!" Skii shouted. "Power up the engine and drive us away from shore. Garth, help with the sails!"

After another twenty minutes, Garth collapsed to the deck, exhausted. "I thought you said that wasn't that hard."

"You're out of shape, Garth!" Skii joked. "Come on, let's set sail."

"I guess I forgot to ask. Where are we going?"

"Well," Skii said, "I thought we'd head for the nearest Shipping Disk and transport over to Pandora at a synchronized time, then watch the sunset. Then we can find a comfortable island nearby, drop anchor, have breakfast on the beach, and do whatever we like. What do you think?"

"Sounds good to me," Kiza said. "Sandwich?" she asked, holding one out to Skii.

"I see you found the food."

"And the autopilot," she agreed, laughing.

Skii accepted the sandwich, taking a bite. "Come on. We've got a lot of work to do to get this thing comfortable. Garth, help me lay out some sheets. Kiza, we shouldn't stay on autopilot for too long."

She nodded and went back to the steerage boom.

The day sailed on uneventfully. The sun, always overhead, beat down on them as they took cover under a shading canopy Skii erected over the boat's wheelwell, an open rectangle that led down into the cabin. "There's a hundred and twenty quarts of pure water under those plates, in case you want any."

"That, I could use," Garth said. Kiza agreed.

Skii got up and checked the maps while Garth filled canteens for all three of them. "We're sitting on top of the SDisk," he said. "I wonder why it hasn't fired."

As soon as he spoke, Kiza gasped. "Wow!"

Skii and Garth poked their heads out. Skii laughed. "Figures. All you had to do was say something. That's it. Welcome to Pandora guys. Sunset in four hours, provided we don't sail too fast." He stepped back inside and checked the navigation screen mounted to the port wall of the cabin. "Kiza, the compass is the gauge to starboard on the floor there by your feet. See it?"

"Got it!"

"Okay. You're going to want to come about until we're heading… what way is the wind headed?"

"It's headed southwest."

Skii poked his head out. "I thought you didn't know how to sail."

"Doesn't mean I can't read a compass. The way you act, you'd think I didn't know how to read."

"Sorry," Skii said. "Thanks. Okay, then, bring us about to a heading of twenty-six degrees and hold us there."

"The sail will swing."

"Then duck."

Grumbling, Kiza slowly pushed the till away from her until the ship came about to the desired angle. "Twenty six degrees."

"Garth!" Skii said. "Pull on that line; pull the sail in a little more and let's see if we can't get some speed out of this tub. This is a good twenty-six knot wind; let's see if we can't pull nine knots."

Garth hauled on the sail, but Skii eventually came and helped him pull. The Succubus sliced through the water cleanly, rocking ever-so-slightly as the waves slammed up against it. "

And here, instead, the sun wasn't overhead. It shone at an angle. Garth found it comforting. "It's just like home."

"If you missed it so much, why'd you come here?"

"It's different," Garth shrugged. "I can always go home, too."

"It feels so weird," Kiza said. "I've never been offworld before."

"It's amazing how few Pendorians ever go offworld. Pendor's so big that there's this weird attitude about leaving. I can't figure it out. How could anyone not want to see this?"

"Does Parma get as many visitors?"

"Well, the recreational section of Parma says it's gotten at least five percent of the total cumulative population of Pendor. But that's only one in twenty, right? The rest have never really wanted to see it, I guess."

"That just seems so weird."

"Dunno," Skii said. "It just is. Anyway, even though it feels like the wind is dying down we're going to reach nightfall in about two hours. A little before that we should reach a set of islands that should be visible any minute now. And the weather service says that it's going to rain Canids and Felids tonight."

"Excuse me?" Garth said.

Kiza laughed. "Cats and Dogs, Garth. Canids and Felids. Well, dogs and cats in that order."

"Whatever," Skii said. "Stew for dinner sound good? There's some serious bread in here."

"It'll do," Kiza agreed.

"Then that's it," Skii nodded. "Okay. I'm going to put it on now and tie down the pot. Just don't ram us up on anything and it won't fall over."

"Garth, would you take the till?"

"Sure," Garth said. "What do I do?"

"Well, you hold it here, and you watch this thing here. It's your compass. We want to keep it on this line, twenty-six degrees west of north. Got that?"

Garth looked down, puzzled. Although he had heard of compasses many times, he had never before had to learn how to use one. "I think so."

"It's really easy," Skii said. "The one in the middle is your speed in knots."

"What's a knot?"

"About two point seven six kilometers per hour, Terran."

"It's an English measurement, isn't it?"

Skii smiled. "It's better than cubits." Garth shook his head while Skii scanned the horizon with a pair of binoculars. "There they are!"

"Where?" Kiza asked.

"Straight ahead. I told you I knew how to navigate. I can even do this on a low-tech world without a problem. Okay, Garth, we're heading for that low shadow on the horizon. See them?"

"Yes!"

"Good. Okay, once we get near the reefline we'll find a place to drop anchor and secure for the night. I think we'll fly a lantern tonight; this is pretty popular spot according to the chart. Kiza, want to go swimming again?"

"To check the anchor? Sure."

"Good. Then it's settled."

They ate dinner an hour later, the boat secure between to wave-breaking reefs that they had had to navigate between more carefully than Skii would have liked. "Don't forget there's a tide here," he said. "The ocean will literally bulge in the center sometimes and flatten out at others. We don't want to suddenly find the Succubus high and dry next morning."

Garth and Kiza nodded. "Look, it's going down."

"I've never watched this," Kiza said, sitting on the edge of the slowly rocking boat as the sun headed towards the horizon. Although some clouds blocked its last couple of seconds of drop, others provided an almost explosively colorful background for the descending sunlight. Garth heard Kiza's breathing speed up a little as the sun came closer and closer to the edge of the horizon, the colors deepening into darker and darker red until, finally, it disappeared completely. "Wow." She sat back and shivered.

Garth sat back. "Okay, I've seen it. It seemed to affect you a lot more than it did me, Kiza. What got to you?"

"It's so… I don't know." She shivered again, grabbing the windbreaker she'd been wearing while minding the rudder and pulling it tightly about her. "It's so natural. Every day you see the sun disappear behind a shadow rec and you know what's happening. You know how it was made by sentients and you can look up the ring and see it happening everywhere. That, though," she said, gesturing to where the sun had vanished, "That's different. It's natural. It's what your people…" She glanced at Garth. "Well, Human Terrans, at any rate, evolved seeing every day. It's no wonder that they built complicated rituals around the disappearing sun and the advent of winter."

"It's not that man-made, Kiza."

"Huh?" Kiza turned to look at Skii quizzically. "What does that mean?"

"It means just that," he said. "Take a look at it. Pendor is not 'under control.' It hasn't been since…" He smiled. "Do you know where Alexandria is?"

"Yeah. It's one of the Pendorian library repositories, isn't it?"

"One of the main ones, yes. SI administration, solid-state construction, full-leach power sources. Have you ever seen it?"

"It's on Pandora somewhere, isn't it? I saw a picture of it once. It looks like it's in the middle of this huge burned circle."

"That's because it is. On the Day of Decant, Ken lit off a clean fusion nuclear explosive there."

"What? Why?"

"To burn the Library at Alexandria one more time. That's where it got its name from. You see, Pandora was the administration site for the millenial project, not Pindam. Pindam was where Ken and Oenone slept for all those millions of years while Pendor was being built. Most people don't know it, but life didn't evolve on Pendor. It evolved here."

"On Pandora?" Garth asked, surprised.

"It was the seeding point. Then the hardiest stuff was transported by Fawn and Halloran to the Vinyare' ocean. And bit by bit the ecosystem was established. But it was established here, not on Pendor. Pendor is too big to establish a working ecosystem that way."

"But… Then what's on Pendor now?"

Skii smiled. "Nobody knows. That's the point. Everything in the transportation and transplantation project was recorded in Alexandria, and Alexandria…"

"Was destroyed. That doesn't make sense. Why would Ken do that?"

Reunion,, Part 4 · Part 1 (1/2)
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