expedition here.”
“Do I convey curiosity or disapproval because we were landed without any knowledge of a previous expedition?”
“Do the Theks appreciate either emotional prod?”
“I doubt it, but the trick is to get them actively thinking about everything.”
“By the time they’ve had their think, we could well be gone from here.” She paused and then, sort of surprised at her own words, added, “You don’t suppose that Elder Thek is from the original group?”
“Varian, it takes a million years to produce the tectonic changes that buried the other cores. Not even a Thek is that long-lived.”
“Its son, maybe? Direct memory transfer? I know they practice that between generations.”
“That could be it!”
“What?”
“How all knowledge of Ireta got lost. Inaccurate memory transfer.”
“There you go again, Kai, accusing the Theks of fallibility. And here they’ve done half your work for you!”
Kai gave her a quick worried look, but she was teasing him.
“Not the dangerous half . . . just sketched in the shields. Which reminds me, if you can spare them, I’d like to borrow the heavy-worlders tomorrow. We’ve got to move a lot of equipment, and Dimenon says the terrain is wicked. Gaber will have to be on the spot for detailed mapping.”
“Who does that leave in camp on duty?”
“Lunzie prefers to stay in, on call. Divisti wants to do some tests, and Trizein won’t stir out of his lab. Oh, fardles, the younger contingent . . .”
“Don’t worry about them. I’ll take ’em . I’d like to see the pay dirt myself. It’d do them good. We can spin off and leave you to work in peace. I think Bonnard could manage the telltagger, even if you don’t—”
“It’s not that I don’t, Varian . . .”
“I’m teasing you, Kai. But the kids’ll be quite as useful for me to check the vicinity for the deposition of wildlife as the heavy-worlders. So long as we stay in the sled,” she added as she noticed Kai about to caution her.
Lunzie joined them at that point and Kai complimented her on the drink.
Lunzie frowned as she regarded the pitcher of liquid dubiously.
“It’s not right yet. I shall distill it again, to see if I can’t filter out that hint of hydrotelluride.”
“By all means keep at it, Lunzie,” said Kai and held out his beaker for her to fill, complaining when she did not.
“You don’t need a big head for tomorrow. This fruit is potent.” Lunzie nodded toward the heavy-worlders, whose deep laughs were rolling through the dome with increased frequency. “They feel its effect and their metabolism can tolerate more alcohol than ours.”
“They do look drunk, don’t they, Varian?”
“Drunk? Perhaps.” It could, Varian thought, account for the way they were handling each other. Alcohol was a mild aphrodisiac for some species. She’d never heard that it affected the heavy-worlders that way. She was wondering if she ought to speak to them when suddenly, as if moved by a spontaneous signal, the heavy-worlders left the dome.
“It’s good to see some can recognize their limitations,” said Lunzie. “I will take their tacit advice and remove temptation.”
Varian protested that she’d only had one serving: Kai had had two. Lunzie gave her a splash more and then strode out of the dome. Gaber half followed her, but a curt remark stopped him at the door. Scowling, the cartographer came back to Varian and Kai.
“The evening’s only started,” he said in an aggrieved tone. “Why did she have to remove the drink?”
“She’s worried about its potency.” Varian studied the pale greenish liquid in her beaker with marked suspicion. “It sure made an impression on the heavy-worlders.”
Gaber snorted. “No need to deprive us because they have soft heads in spite of their heavy muscles.”
Kai and Varian exchanged glances because Gaber was slurring some of his words, whether he was oblivious to the fact or not. He took a careful sip, closing his eyes
“Do I convey curiosity or disapproval because we were landed without any knowledge of a previous expedition?”
“Do the Theks appreciate either emotional prod?”
“I doubt it, but the trick is to get them actively thinking about everything.”
“By the time they’ve had their think, we could well be gone from here.” She paused and then, sort of surprised at her own words, added, “You don’t suppose that Elder Thek is from the original group?”
“Varian, it takes a million years to produce the tectonic changes that buried the other cores. Not even a Thek is that long-lived.”
“Its son, maybe? Direct memory transfer? I know they practice that between generations.”
“That could be it!”
“What?”
“How all knowledge of Ireta got lost. Inaccurate memory transfer.”
“There you go again, Kai, accusing the Theks of fallibility. And here they’ve done half your work for you!”
Kai gave her a quick worried look, but she was teasing him.
“Not the dangerous half . . . just sketched in the shields. Which reminds me, if you can spare them, I’d like to borrow the heavy-worlders tomorrow. We’ve got to move a lot of equipment, and Dimenon says the terrain is wicked. Gaber will have to be on the spot for detailed mapping.”
“Who does that leave in camp on duty?”
“Lunzie prefers to stay in, on call. Divisti wants to do some tests, and Trizein won’t stir out of his lab. Oh, fardles, the younger contingent . . .”
“Don’t worry about them. I’ll take ’em . I’d like to see the pay dirt myself. It’d do them good. We can spin off and leave you to work in peace. I think Bonnard could manage the telltagger, even if you don’t—”
“It’s not that I don’t, Varian . . .”
“I’m teasing you, Kai. But the kids’ll be quite as useful for me to check the vicinity for the deposition of wildlife as the heavy-worlders. So long as we stay in the sled,” she added as she noticed Kai about to caution her.
Lunzie joined them at that point and Kai complimented her on the drink.
Lunzie frowned as she regarded the pitcher of liquid dubiously.
“It’s not right yet. I shall distill it again, to see if I can’t filter out that hint of hydrotelluride.”
“By all means keep at it, Lunzie,” said Kai and held out his beaker for her to fill, complaining when she did not.
“You don’t need a big head for tomorrow. This fruit is potent.” Lunzie nodded toward the heavy-worlders, whose deep laughs were rolling through the dome with increased frequency. “They feel its effect and their metabolism can tolerate more alcohol than ours.”
“They do look drunk, don’t they, Varian?”
“Drunk? Perhaps.” It could, Varian thought, account for the way they were handling each other. Alcohol was a mild aphrodisiac for some species. She’d never heard that it affected the heavy-worlders that way. She was wondering if she ought to speak to them when suddenly, as if moved by a spontaneous signal, the heavy-worlders left the dome.
“It’s good to see some can recognize their limitations,” said Lunzie. “I will take their tacit advice and remove temptation.”
Varian protested that she’d only had one serving: Kai had had two. Lunzie gave her a splash more and then strode out of the dome. Gaber half followed her, but a curt remark stopped him at the door. Scowling, the cartographer came back to Varian and Kai.
“The evening’s only started,” he said in an aggrieved tone. “Why did she have to remove the drink?”
“She’s worried about its potency.” Varian studied the pale greenish liquid in her beaker with marked suspicion. “It sure made an impression on the heavy-worlders.”
Gaber snorted. “No need to deprive us because they have soft heads in spite of their heavy muscles.”
Kai and Varian exchanged glances because Gaber was slurring some of his words, whether he was oblivious to the fact or not. He took a careful sip, closing his eyes
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