MARL17 floated in a lazy circle, Elianna in the center, his shiny skin dappled with turquoise patches and a few red dots. Startled, she paused in midstep and froze. No one had warned her the AI might be dangerous so she hoped his current odd behavior had a benign, simple explanation.
“Did you not have sidekicks on your previous ship?” MARL17 bobbed on his antigrav cushion in front of her face, blocking her access to the Chimmer tech she was obsessed with studying.
Deciding the only way to get on with her mission was to address the working relationship issue, she made herself relax. She might much prefer to work alone and not have to talk but clearly Aydarr and Jill felt there was value in having MARL17 collaborate with her. I’m the newcomer here, so I have to get over this aversion to a piece of ancient tech I don’t understand. “No, I didn’t. We had junior technicians, a cadre of trainees, but I usually worked alone. It’s the way I’m constituted, you know? A loner?” Would an AI understand the concept?
“Where the Badari are all about the pack,” the AI said. “Jill is all about the pack, and her sisters and the other humans. I believe she places her sisters slightly above the pack, but Aydarr stands at the top of her personal hierarchy.”
Where is this going? And Jill has sisters on this planet? Elianna tried to rein in her wandering thoughts and her sudden intense desire for a mug of coffee. If she was going to have a debate with an AI, she could at least be drinking her shot of caffeine and sugar. The crew of the Mackenzie had kept her well supplied with coffee, the real stuff too. The withdrawal headache had been ferocious when she was first awakened in the Khagrish lab, and a faint throbbing pulsed at her temples now. The AI obviously had a high emotional intelligence quotient and she was intrigued. Keeping her tone mild, she asked, “And MARL? Where does he stand?”
“He is her sidekick. She is his authority.” The colors on his metallic skin were static for a moment then pink invaded the turquoise and the red dots disappeared. “Think of me as a cub in this instance, assigned to you to learn as much as I can through observation. I’ll withhold my expertise on the ship and its equipment until you request inputs.”
“My apprentice,” she said, relieved at finding common ground on how to proceed. “That works. For now, if I have a question, I promise to ask. But I have to do this my own way, which is from the inside out, the bottom up.” She spread her hands wide as if appealing for understanding from the unusual sentient. “I’m kind of set in my ways but I’ll do my best to adapt. I only want to help Aydarr and Jill get this ship safely on its way.”
“ You humans are all so different.” MARL17 moved aside, sending a faint breeze of displaced air in her direction.
“Are the Badari all alike?” she asked, thinking of Kierce and wishing she had a manual or a diagram to help her help him. He couldn’t really want to remain as the tiger forever, could he? There was so much she didn’t know about him, or his people. Her cheeks grew hot as she considered their two nights of intimacy and the things she did know about him. Seeking to redirect her thoughts, she walked toward the main power plant area of the engine room. Circling inevitably back to Kierce, she admitted more insight into the pack would be helpful, although she’d have to be tactful what she asked.
“The Badari share many similarities, due to their being genetically engineered from the same DNA subset pool,” MARL17 said, surprising her. “Yet each is an individual within the pack parameters. Aydarr is not Mateer is not Reede is not—”
She raised her hands to stop the recitation before he named the entire pack then brushed her hair off her forehead with a grin. “I get the idea. I’m going to concentrate on technical issues for a while now, ok?”
The colors withdrew from his surface so rapidly she did a double take, and MARL17 floated silently, gone entirely silver.
Could you hurt the feelings of an alien AI? “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be so abrupt. My old crew used to tell me all the time I could be rude when I was fixated on a tech problem.” She reached out and touched the tip of one fingertip to the shiny surface. “I promise to do better, okay?”
Bright yellow cascaded over MARL17’s surface in a cheerful flood, radiating like ripples from the spot she’d touched and he bobbed in the air on his antigrav cushion. “It’s useful to me to have data points from someone like yourself. You have a focused mind. We’ll be a good team.”
“All right then, let me start making the attempt to learn what you already know and I’ll be sure to ask for hints along the way.”
Time to get to work. Elianna laid one hand on the engine shielding and bowed her head, drawing in the scent of the alien metals and lubricants. She tried to clear her mind and let herself become receptive to whatever the Chimmer ship could or would tell her, not in words, of course, but in impressions. She had an almost mystical belief in her tech skills. Her crewmates and bosses loved to tease her about the way she could diagnose and fix—or even anticipate—problems with the systems on her vessels that defeated everyone else. Her father had possessed the same talents, and she’d spent every spare minute as a child accompanying him and watching him at work. Whatever her gifts might be, she was grateful for them, especially right now, when the unknown number of Badari and hundreds of humans were depending on this ship to carry a call for help.
Over the next few hours, although she lost track of time and wouldn’t have eaten all day if Walt hadn’t intruded on her concentration to hand her a sandwich, Elianna worked her way through the ship, exploring all the nooks and crannies, evaluating every system and how one linked to the others, dictating notes to MARL17 here and there. She didn’t make any adjustments yet, although at times her fingers itched to tweak a lever’s position or retune an out of harmony circuit. I need to see the entire picture.
The Chimmer designs had their own logic, which became clear to her as she evaluated the systems. A few things she had to admit the aliens might even do better than the humans did, while other aspects of the tech had her shaking her head. She finished her journey in the control room on the top deck.
“What’s this?” She pointed at a small shiny ovoid attached to one of the consoles, which clearly didn’t belong. The shape and the washes of swirling, angry red and orange color over its surface reminded her of MARL Primary. “Not Chimmer, surely?”
“MARL manifested a subunit to attempt to fathom the astronavigation system and determine where the Sectors might be, in relation to this planet,” MARL17 said helpfully. Elianna detected an undertone of admiration and wild shards of purple were swirling on her AI’s surface. Were there hierarchies of tasks within the whole MARL setup? Humans tended to have them, prestige jobs and less prestigious but highly necessary tasks. A wave of sympathy toward her AI, as she’d begun to think of him over the hours, flooded her mind. MARL17 finished his report. “As yet there has been limited success. The ship is unwilling or unable to clarify the relevant parameters to MARL’s satisfaction.”
Hands on her hips, Elianna watched the colorful display on the smaller unit. “I’m glad no one expects me to solve the astronav problem.” Shaking her head, she moved to the first console on the port side and studied the controls. “What do we know about this array?”
MARL17 drifted to her side and began providing the requested information. Elianna became engrossed in the technical challenges. She spent a long time in the control chamber and finally rose, stretching to relieve a kink in her back and yawned as she did so. “Next time I’ll need one of the pilots in here with me, to see what their understanding is, based on their training.”
“Should I summon one of them now?” Vibrating with apparent eagerness, MARL17 flashed green and dark blue.
“No, it’s not necessary. I wouldn’t start my work here anyway. I’m thinking out loud. I know enough to be able to give Aydarr and Jill my recommendations. Time to go find the others and tell them what I think. Head for home—I can probably grab a few winks of sleep on the flight to the valley.” And check in on Kierce as soon as possible. I hop
With the AI on her heels, she descended through the ship and made her way out the airlock onto the landing area, to find the night sky had clouded over and a light rain was falling. Walt straightened up from where he’d taken refuge in the lee of the ship. “We made a betting pool on how long you’d be.”
Not sure whether to be amused or offended, she asked, “Who won?”
“Gabe. He usually wins. Don’t play poker with him. The shelter is this way.” Walt took her elbow and led her across the rocky surface toward the edge of the forest in the light MARL17 provided for them as he floated behind Elianna. “We don’t need a full debrief, save the details for Aydarr.”
“Will we fly back to the valley tonight?” she asked as they moved hastily to get out of the rain. She was prepared to argue if the pilot said no.
“Unless you need more time.”
“No, I finished my assessment. Of course, now I’m eager to dive into the work itself, but I assume I can’t touch anything until I have Jill and Aydarr’s permission.” She remembered what Bettira, her intake interviewer had told her, about how the Alpha and his mate were totally in charge, and added her own experiences with Aydarr to the mix. Yeah, no hands on interaction with the one and only hope the Badari had of reaching the Sectors until Aydarr approved.
“Good call.” Walt obviously approved her caution. “You learn your way around a new situation fast, which is a good survival skill to have.”
She ducked into a cabin ahead of the pilot, to find Lorrali taking a nap on a Badari-sized bunk, and Gabe and Sam playing cards. The other techs had been on call in case she needed their inputs and had accomplished a few small maintenance tasks on the ship which had been agreed to beforehand by Aydarr. One Badari soldier was out standing guard and the other was watching the card game and offering suggestions. The latter rose as she came inside and fetched her a mug of steaming tea and a covered plate.
“Thanks,” she said as she sat at the hastily cleared table. “I didn’t realize how hungry I was getting.” She took a sip of the bracing tea, enjoying the warmth as the liquid went down. The plate held a savory stew and she dug in with real pleasure.
“There’s good hunting on the island,” Camron said as he brought her a thick slice of bread. “And the chef sends other provisions via the shuttle. We didn’t think you wanted to be disturbed earlier, when you were working. Or at least not too often.”
“Not after the way you kinda snarled at me when I brought you the sandwich.” Walt laughed. “We’ll leave as soon as you’ve eaten.”
“I didn’t want interruptions today, you were right.” She sopped the bread in the gravy. “I get deep into the problems and hate having my sequence of thought shifted. Although the sandwich was a lifesaver. This stew sure tastes good now.”
“So?” Gabe asked, cards forgotten in front of him. “Are we going to the stars in our borrowed ride or not?”
Elianna swallowed a delicious mouthful and nodded. “Doable. A few of the ship’s problems show evidence of having been there for a while. The indications of long term wear are obvious to me. The Chimmer must not have been diligent about maintenance,” she said. “As far as alterations needed to enable you to fly her in hyperdrive, I’m confident I can adapt and adjust what’s needed. About ninety percent sure, if you want a quantified number.” Based on what she’d seen today and her deep store of knowledge, she had no doubts.
“Hot damn, the best news I’ve heard since the day Darik and Nicolle hijacked the ship in the first place,” Gabe said, slamming his hand on the table and making all the dishes jump. “Progress at last.”
“Your judgment is good enough for me,” Walt said to Elianna as she mopped up a bit of spilled stew. “And I’m sure Aydarr will buy off on your estimate.” He paced across the hut as if he had too much positive energy to sit. “I’d buy you a drink, lady, if we had any feelgoods here. This is the most important thing we have going for long term survival, getting help from the Sectors.”
“I can’t do anything about the astronavigation,” she said, wanting to be clear about the parameters of the help she could offer.
“That’s MARL’s assignment,” Walt reminded her. “He’s told Jill and Aydarr he needs a few major stellar landmarks, maybe even one, and he can get us into Sectors space from here.”
Elianna wondered how the AI planned to plot a course if no one recognized any such landmarks when they made it off the planet and out of the solar system, but she held her comments in abeyance. Walt and Gabe were incredibly brave men in her opinion and knew the risks better than she did. No need for her to emphasize the problems.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Apparently, the Alpha had left orders to wake him no matter what time it was when she returned to the valley because Elianna found herself in his conference room doing a full pre-dawn debrief to Aydarr, Jill, MARL and several other people whose names she was too tired to retain. “I’ll try to finish the repairs in seven days, ten at the outside,” she said after going through the specific issues, describing the challenges in layman’s terms. “The toolkit on board the Nicolle is pretty comprehensive, but there are a few other items I could use if you happen to have any of them, or anything similar.”
Aydarr looked at the woman Nicolle, who tapped her stylus on the table in a quick rhythm as she seemed to mentally review the contents of her Stores. Elianna wouldn’t have been too surprised if she did carry a complete inventory in her head. Nicolle projected the air of being an extremely competent administrator. “Give me a list and we’ll see. The inventory of scavenged items is wildly diverse. Our guys tend to grab anything that isn’t nailed down if there’s time before each Khagrish installation has to be destroyed.”
“I’ll need Lorrali and Sam to assist,” Elianna said. “Since they’re already superficially familiar with the ship. Any more people would get in the way.”
There was a loud hum and a flash of yellow from MARL17.
“And you, of course,” she said hastily, having gotten used to the AI’s fragile feelings during their time on the grounded Chimmer ship. “No one else can assemble and disassemble schematics on the spot for me the way you can. I wish I’d had your help in my old job.”
Pink and turquoise chased the yellow across the AI’s shiny surface and the larger MARL unit next to Jill went turquoise with green splotches. Elianna assumed all of the technicolor display was positive.
“We can’t fly you between the island and the valley every day,” Aydarr said. “Too much activity runs the risk of drawing unwanted attention.”
Elianna took a deep breath and decided how to phrase her objection. “Ordinarily I’d say I don’t mind staying there,” she said. “ Once I start a job like this, I’m likely to become completely absorbed in it. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for a person like me.”
“But?” Jill asked, eyebrows raised.
“I have a responsibility here, to the tiger. How is he? I’ve been terribly worried about him and I’d have to know he was doing okay, settling in completely here before I leave him again. I’d like to go see him as soon as we’re done.” Elianna figured Kierce must not have made the move into his humanoid form or someone would have told her about it. Maybe he was waiting for her. Impatience to see him was a burning need in her gut.
Aydarr flicked a glance at the others in the room, as if wishing they weren’t there for any discussion of the giant cat. “The guards say he’s restless, had a bad night apparently. Yesterday was bad. It might be better to leave him alone, let him settle and get used to the enclosure. Jill and I don’t have time to escort you this morning.”
Refusing to allow herself to be intimidated, Elianna stiffened her spine in the face of the Alpha’s obvious impatience. “He might be missing me, you know. We were in a cell together for days. I’m the only familiar person he’s seen in this place. There’s no need for you to go with me. I just need you to tell the guards I’m coming.”
From the expressions around her—wide eyes and dropped jaws, Gabe hiding a grin, the Badari frowning—she figured a human telling the Alpha he wasn’t required was a major gaffe, but she was tired and frankly didn’t care. Aydarr needed her, which was the important thing giving her leverage she wouldn’t have had otherwise.
“Very well, you’re cleared to enter the valley quadrant where the enclosure is located.” Aydarr left the room. Elianna caught a glimpse of several other Badari waiting for him in the hall
Taking a deep breath, realizing she’d been on the edge of her chair, Elianna said, “We’re done here, right?”
Right,” Jill said, giving Nicolle a cheerful glance. “You’ll scour the inventory in our Stores to see what we might have that she can use, right?”
“Give me a list.” Nicolle was cheerful and efficient. “My staff loves to go treasure hunting in the bins and stacks.”
“And the plan will be for you and your two human assistants and MARL17 to relocate to the island day after tomorrow,” Jill said.
“I have to see how the tiger is doing before I can commit to depart in two days,” Elianna said, earning herself a frown from the dynamic woman who was the second in command.
“Any delay will have to be cleared with my mate,” Jill said, shaking her head. “And he’s going to want compelling reasons.” The woman paused as if waiting to hear the explanation for Elianna’s reluctance.
“I’ll remember that,” Elianna said mildly.
“The big welcoming party for your group of rescued prisoners is tonight,” Nicolle said to Elianna as if to cover the awkward moment, as the Alpha’s mate left the room. “You won’t want to miss the festivities—you can meet the entire population of the valley, except for whoever might be on duty, of course.”
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