Dinosaurus Planet Survivors
- Автор: Маккефри Энн
- Серия: Dinosaur Planet #2
- Язык: английский
- Жанр: Научная фантастика
Электронная книга - «Dinosaurus Planet Survivors». Краткое содержание книги:
The three remained discreetly above and behind the sled until Portegin descended to the vertical landing point in front of the camp’s veil screen. As Rianav climbed out of the sled, the golden fliers circled once and then disappeared to the northwest. As she had felt comforted by their curious escort, now she felt sad at their abrupt departure.
The veil screen opened and a woman walked out to meet them.
“Report, Varian.”
Blinking in confusion, Rianav gave her head a sharp shake. She did not recognize that person as part of her command.
“I promised you a barrier, Varian,” the woman said with a droll smile. “Did I set it too deep?”
At that posthypnotic cue, the overlay of Rianav gave way to Varian. “Krims! Lunzie, how did you manage that sort of change?” Varian turned around staring at Triv who had so recently been another person entirely, and Portegin.
Triv was shaking his head, too, while Portegin, emerging from the sled, nearly fell in his surprise.
“Hey, what happened? We’re not from any cruiser!” As the realization of his day’s adventure seeped into his true self, Portegin collapsed against the side of the sled. “You mean, we just went in among those heavyworlders and… How?”
“Lunzie did it,” Varian said laughing with relief and nervousness as she absorbed the enormity of what they had done.
“He who thinks he’s telling the truth is more convincing Portegin,” Lunzie remarked.
“And you made sure our truths matched?” Triv asked.
“I’m better pleased that they weren’t needed. Come on in,” Lunzie said, wagging her hand to indicate tiny insects flying through the veil opening. “Kai’s fretted long enough.
“He’s improving?” Varian asked.
“Slowly. That fringe toxemia is affecting his sense of touch. He burned his hand, picking up a hot shell and wasn’t aware of heat or pain. I smelled the seared flesh. We must all watch out for him.”
Varian, entering the domed shelter, found herself viewing it with Rianav’s values: neat, functional on a primitive level, but cramped. Rianav also looked over the slightly built man-the effects of the poisoning were evident in his posture as well as the pallor of his face. Aygar was more to Rianav’s liking. Varian reasserted herself with an angry shake of her head. She was not Rianav, the lieutenant of a nonexistent cruiser; she was Varian, veterinary xenobiologist. It was obvious from the state of Kai’s health, that she must assume the leadership of what remained of the expedition. Or was she leader? Lunzie had been acting far more decisively than she and along more constructive lines. Rianav lingered in Varian’s perceptions. Varian wished fervently to be only herself again, without these disruptive second thoughts.
“I am glad you got back safely, Varian,” Kai said, his face lighting with a wide smile. Odd blotches marred his face where the fringe punctures had healed but left bleached circles. Varian wondered if that flesh was desensitized as well. “Lunzie kept reassuring me you’d be safe but I don’t trust those heavyworlders.”
“They’re not heavyworlders any more,” Triv said with a derisive snort. “Not even Tanegli. He’s just a crippled flabby old man with delusions.”
“I’d question the use of ‘delusions’, Varian said, sounding like her alter ego again.
“Why don’t you start at the beginning?” Lunzie suggested.
But once they had seated themselves and Varian began speaking, she was Rianav, reporting dry fact. Triv added his observations while Portegin listened, occasionally shaking his head as if he could not reconcile his barriered experience with what he was hearing.
“Did Tanegli recognize you?” Kai asked.
“No. But then he hardly expected to see us,” Varian said, aware of a vague sadness for Tanegli’s disintegrating body and personality. Or was that Rianav thinking? “We presented ourselves as a rescue party and while only a week of subjective time has passed for us, it was forty-three years for him.”
“Rianav-I mean…” Triv corrected himself with a laugh and then a sly glance at her, “Varian makes a convincing lieutenant, Kai.”
“Our appearance, even as a rescue team, upset Tanegli,” Varian went on, determined to suppress one set of her reactions. “He expected to see heavyworlder colonists emerge from that sled, reporting from their mother ship.”
“Aygar didn’t mention his encounter with you?”
“No-”
“And he hand-picked his reception committee at the old compound,” Triv said with a derisory grin. “Only they weren’t fast enough for Disciplined troops.” When Lunzie gave him a sideways glance of amusement, Triv’s expression turned to one of chagrin. “Well, we were Disciplined and we thought we were troops.”
“So you used the stunners?” Lunzie’s question was more statement.
“They made the difference all right,” Varian said. “On medium, they’d only be immobilized about fifty minutes. It was raining.”
“A thoroughly chastening experience for your friends, I’ve no doubt,” Lunzie said. “It’s also less likely they’ll mention their abortive attempt when they return to the plateau. Not that that matters one way or another.”
“You mean, our deception will be discovered when the colony ship lands?” Kai asked.
Lunzie blinked once as if he had taken her meaning entirely wrong, but he couldn’t think how.
“First thing they’d do after landing is try to find us,” Varian said, “once they have the equipment and personnel to mount a planet-wide search.”
“Oh?” Lunzie was amused. “I thought you said you were a convincing rescue team.”
“Yes, but…”
“That colony ship is not coming in with due authorization from FSP,” said Lunzie, ticking off her points. “You said they had primitive hydroelectric plants? Then they’ve enough to send pulsed code signals to alert the colony ship. Which, because it is not authorized, will not wish to be challenged by any FSP cruisers in the system. Remember, colony-sized ships have got to start slowing once they enter a solar system. They’d come in on a polar entry, more than likely. Did you see a beacon during your sweep of the settlement?”
“No, too hazy, but I’d say it was on the far edge of the grid, on the ridge,” Portegin said.
“Would it have a reciprocal facility?” Lunzie asked.
“They had all the spare matrices from the shuttle,” Portegin said in a sour tone.
“Bakkun had the basic technical knowledge to improvise,” Kai said, remembering the man’s personnel record.
“It’ll buy us more time if they have augmented their communications,” said Lunzie, pleased.
“More time for what and how?” Varian asked. She was surprised to see a twinkle in the medic’s eyes as Lunzie turned to her.
“To establish our own claims on Ireta. Believe me, with as grand a larceny as this, no colony ship commander is going to land unless he’s very sure there isn’t a cruiser lurking behind one of Ireta’s moons or-” Lunzie turned to Portegin. “Do we have enough matrices to contact the Ryxi?”
“The Ryxi?” Varian was startled by the question. She glared at Lunzie in sudden antagonism. The Ryxi mustn’t learn about the giffs.
“I’d quite forgotten about them,” Kai said.
“I’d rather we didn’t,” Varian said in a tight voice. “How could they help us?”
“Why would they?” Triv wanted to know.
“Vrl wasn’t pleased with Kai’s report about the giffs,” Varian began urgently. “You must know what the Ryxi are like, Lunzie?”
“Oh, I do. As I recall it, Kai, you mentioned that the Ryxi had sent out a homing capsule directing their colony ship to start. They’d be well settled in by now-”
“Why would they help us?” Kai asked. He was as unhappy about contacting the Ryxi as Varian but for a less altruistic motive. “They probably assumed that the ARCT-10 picked us up decades ago.”