Serpent's Gift by A. C. Crispin, Deborah A. Marshall Page A
Authors: A. C. Crispin, Deborah A. Marshall
Ads: Link
Simiu student were quartered.
What a pain in the ass! Heather thought disgustedly. Aunt Natalie would have loved this jerk--if he'd been human, that is... Aunt Natalie had been petrified of aliens, claiming that they were going to take over Earth "as soon as our backs are turned." The bigoted old bitch, Heather thought, picturing her aunt's reaction to finding herself on an airless asteroid with hundreds of aliens. The girl smiled evilly. Too bad there's no way to swing that. ..
Hearing footsteps, she tensed, crouching behind the statue. Two human students passed the entrance to the Simiu wing, but they -were deep in conversation and neither glanced up. Heather's heart was slamming in her chest, and she was tempted to bolt back to her room and forget the whole thing. She half rose, then Serge LaRoche's face rose before her eyes.
Heather experienced again that awful moment when she'd read his mind and discovered that he knew she'd pissed her pants.
Slowly, she settled back down, her mouth set in a grim line.
Almost time, she thought, checking on Khuharkk', who was cleaning his teeth. One final computer check . . .
60
With practice she'd learned to enter the computer's "mind" even from remote peripherals. Now, staring at her computerpen, Heather let her
consciousness extend, tracing along the linkage of the pen, until she was in the mainframe, tracing the pathways to the environmental systems. Yes, the alteration she had programmed to affect Khuharkk's quarters was ready to be activated, then erase all trace of its presence an instant later.
She concentrated again on Khuharkk', who was giving loving attention to the huge ivory canines that had frightened her so badly when he'd bared them and advanced on her. Soon. .. soon . ..
Moments later he was finished, and his attention shifted to the last of his presleep rituals. Heather could feel the vicarious pressure in her bladder, her bowels .. .
Khuharkk' positioned himself on his toilet.
Poised, hardly breathing, Heather touched her mind to the environmental computer's, and reversed one vital command in the sanitation system's disposal system.
Khuharkk' pushed the waste-disposal button.
A bare instant later a Simiu's outraged shriek reverberated through the corridors, loud despite the soundproofing. Hysterical yammering, then other howls, followed.
Rising to her feet, Heather stepped out of the niche, tucking her pen into the pocket of her jumpsuit. She walked quickly until she reached the main corridor, then sauntered away, smiling.
61
CHAPTER 4
Alarums and Excursions
"To friendship," Jeff Morrow said, raising his cup of sake with a flourish.
Behind him, a miniature waterfall splashed into a streambed pebbled with colorful stones, where fish vivid as living
jewels swam lazily. Paper screens with carved frames gave diners an illusion of privacy, and twelve-tone music plinked softly in the background.
Seated on a cushion before the low, lacquered table, Rob Gable raised his cup of green tea. "To friendship," he echoed. "Long may ours endure."
"Hear, hear," Jeff responded solemnly, then emptied his cup. Rob drank his tea, then scooped up a cucumber roll in his chopsticks and popped it into his mouth. "Best I've had in years," he said as soon as he could speak coherently. "Try the futo-maki," he urged, capturing one himself. "If I keep this up, I won't have room for the tempura."
Jeff sampled the sushi and nodded agreement. "So tell me, how is everything going at the school?"
"Hectic," Rob sighed. "It's always hectic when we get a new '"shipment of freshmen in. The kids are homesick, they need lots of reassurance, course and schedule changes, personality conflicts, culture shock. .." He shook his head ruefully as he cautiously sampled a bite of pickled ginger. "After a month or so, they'll |have adjusted, and things will calm down, as much as they ever do. Running StarBridge reminds me of that old Chinese curse:
'May you live in interesting times.'
What a pain in the ass! Heather thought disgustedly. Aunt Natalie would have loved this jerk--if he'd been human, that is... Aunt Natalie had been petrified of aliens, claiming that they were going to take over Earth "as soon as our backs are turned." The bigoted old bitch, Heather thought, picturing her aunt's reaction to finding herself on an airless asteroid with hundreds of aliens. The girl smiled evilly. Too bad there's no way to swing that. ..
Hearing footsteps, she tensed, crouching behind the statue. Two human students passed the entrance to the Simiu wing, but they -were deep in conversation and neither glanced up. Heather's heart was slamming in her chest, and she was tempted to bolt back to her room and forget the whole thing. She half rose, then Serge LaRoche's face rose before her eyes.
Heather experienced again that awful moment when she'd read his mind and discovered that he knew she'd pissed her pants.
Slowly, she settled back down, her mouth set in a grim line.
Almost time, she thought, checking on Khuharkk', who was cleaning his teeth. One final computer check . . .
60
With practice she'd learned to enter the computer's "mind" even from remote peripherals. Now, staring at her computerpen, Heather let her
consciousness extend, tracing along the linkage of the pen, until she was in the mainframe, tracing the pathways to the environmental systems. Yes, the alteration she had programmed to affect Khuharkk's quarters was ready to be activated, then erase all trace of its presence an instant later.
She concentrated again on Khuharkk', who was giving loving attention to the huge ivory canines that had frightened her so badly when he'd bared them and advanced on her. Soon. .. soon . ..
Moments later he was finished, and his attention shifted to the last of his presleep rituals. Heather could feel the vicarious pressure in her bladder, her bowels .. .
Khuharkk' positioned himself on his toilet.
Poised, hardly breathing, Heather touched her mind to the environmental computer's, and reversed one vital command in the sanitation system's disposal system.
Khuharkk' pushed the waste-disposal button.
A bare instant later a Simiu's outraged shriek reverberated through the corridors, loud despite the soundproofing. Hysterical yammering, then other howls, followed.
Rising to her feet, Heather stepped out of the niche, tucking her pen into the pocket of her jumpsuit. She walked quickly until she reached the main corridor, then sauntered away, smiling.
61
CHAPTER 4
Alarums and Excursions
"To friendship," Jeff Morrow said, raising his cup of sake with a flourish.
Behind him, a miniature waterfall splashed into a streambed pebbled with colorful stones, where fish vivid as living
jewels swam lazily. Paper screens with carved frames gave diners an illusion of privacy, and twelve-tone music plinked softly in the background.
Seated on a cushion before the low, lacquered table, Rob Gable raised his cup of green tea. "To friendship," he echoed. "Long may ours endure."
"Hear, hear," Jeff responded solemnly, then emptied his cup. Rob drank his tea, then scooped up a cucumber roll in his chopsticks and popped it into his mouth. "Best I've had in years," he said as soon as he could speak coherently. "Try the futo-maki," he urged, capturing one himself. "If I keep this up, I won't have room for the tempura."
Jeff sampled the sushi and nodded agreement. "So tell me, how is everything going at the school?"
"Hectic," Rob sighed. "It's always hectic when we get a new '"shipment of freshmen in. The kids are homesick, they need lots of reassurance, course and schedule changes, personality conflicts, culture shock. .." He shook his head ruefully as he cautiously sampled a bite of pickled ginger. "After a month or so, they'll |have adjusted, and things will calm down, as much as they ever do. Running StarBridge reminds me of that old Chinese curse:
'May you live in interesting times.'
Similar Books
