Page 49 of Experimental Voyage
“Famous last words,” I repeated, shaking my head and deciding Delta had the right idea. Maybe by the time we reached the bridge, the woman would be in a more sensible mood.
Waldren’s homeworld hung in the darkness, a deep blue pearl flecked with dark green and brown masses of land. Unlike Melody, which had boasted significant continents, the planet before us had clusters of islands, most barely visible from the comfort of space. I stared with wide eyes, wondering why anyone had attempted to found a colony there. “There are no major continents?”
“There are no major continents on this world,” Viva confirmed. “It’s over ninety percent water, and it boasts the most diverse oceanic ecosystems in the charted universe. It’s larger than most other habitable worlds, too.” After a moment, one of the displays changed, showing a picture of the planet below. A red circle marked one of the larger islands. “This is where the colony had been founded, and it is the largest island on the planet. It is three hundred miles wide and six hundred miles long.”
No wonder it was barely a speck from space. “And that’s the largest?”
“It is, yes. This world would not be able to sustain large populations of human life, and it was being evaluated as a place for ocean sports and holidays. A vacation world. Such a plan could happen still, but the fungus would need to be better studied. We’re to bring back a sample.”
I eyed the woman. “The terrariums are legitimate studies, then?”
“Yes. Cremora Delta has offered to handle studying the fungus to see if there is a way to permanently adapthomo-sapiensto them. At a very minimum, treatments will beimproved. Waldren’s sister has told us of a small, furry animal reminiscent of a cat, easily domesticated. Waldren kept company with a colony of them while wild. It is the only thing he actuallymissesfrom here.” Viva grimaced and glanced at me with a rather apologetic expression. “He adores Palta, but the reason hehasPalta is because of the animals from this world. If the cats can be domesticated and trained for space, we have been given permission to catch some for him. Survivors of failed colonies are given… certain privileges beyond what is normal. And unlike his sister, Waldren just isn’t adapting well.”
“Does his sister happen to have a name?”
“She does, but she has her quirks, and she prefers if we don’t use her name unlessshetells it to you. So, she’s Waldren’s sister to just about everybody. It grounds Waldren.”
Oh. My eyes widened at the thought of Waldren being so unstable that his sister had let go ofher namejust so he had some association with the world outside of his failed colony. “By reminding him he has a sister, he’s forced to stick around?”
Viva nodded. “And her name is precious to her. It was the only thing she took from her failed colony. The fungus had infected everything, and they even got new clothes. We now know how to purify clothing contaminated with the fungus, but that was not the case then. Everything they had was left behind. We may bring back any surviving items that might have belonged to them as part of our expedition.”
While the journey was for my sake, I got the feeling Waldren and his sister were the true benefactors of our venture. “All right. We need to look for cat-like creatures and catch them, search the ruins for anything that might be salvageable, and earn money hunting these carnivorous stags.”
“Correct. And if a carnivorous stag or two find their way onto the ship, still living and in stasis, and can be domesticated, well, who is going to tell the Veloc they can’t have new pets?”
“We are not domesticating deer that want to eat us,” I informed her.
She pouted. “But they’re pretty.”
“You deal with Veloc. You do not need more beings that might eat you if annoyed.”
“While you make a good point, I don’t see why you want to ruin my fun.”
“Waldren deals with Veloc daily. I’m going to end up chasing him down, stealing his ship, and dealing with Veloc, too. If these deer are domesticated, I’m going to have Veloc and these deer to worry about. I have sufficient worries.”
She snickered. “Already worked your way up to stealing his ship, have you?”
I nodded. “I suspect that plays a part in why I haven’t been given any piloting courses. I’ve thought about stowing away and escaping Cremora Delta that way. I don’t need to pilot the ship that way.”
“This is why most worlds don’t let their younglings out into space early. Some are like you, and once you’ve gotten a taste of the great unknown, the drive to explore is relentless. I’m the same way. Delta wasn’t expecting that, but he’s a good sport about it. He’s gotten good at telling when Ineedto go to space. The rest of the time, I do my best to tolerate being stuck on a planet.” Viva glanced at the screen, and a red dot appeared. “According to the charts I have, that’s the location of the failed colony. Waldren’s sister stayed at the site. Waldren… did not.”
“He was a bit feral, wasn’t he?”
“That’s an understatement. His sister did what she could for him, but he’d snapped following the deaths of their parents. It was a few years after the Veloc caught him that they were able to domesticate him.” Viva snickered and shook her head. “His sister, the entire time, was enjoying a life of luxury and pampering while her husband courted her. Waldren’s asstubborn as they come, but all things considered, he’s done well. He might never be fully tamed and socialized, though.”
“He’s just a bit grouchy.”
“Ah, he’s just a bit grouchy while aroundyou. Waldren is a jackass with mosthomo-sapiens, and his general response to most Veloc involves attempted murder. Because the Veloc aren’t in their right mind, they find the murder attempts to be charming. He’s learned to accept the Veloc in his sister’s clan, but everyone else is fair game for some wholesome violence. The Veloc don’t mind. Waldren doesn’t know how to really express himself any other way. Therapists have a devil of a time working with him because of his circumstances. Don’t be surprised if you get recruited to be part of his therapy plan. His sister, for the record, is much better off than he is, and she’s settled well. However, at this stage, she’s culturally a Veloc far more than she ishomo-sapiens.I met her on one of my jaunts out while you were schooling. I also met Waldren. We did not kill each other. I even let him pet my ears because he was curious. Apparently, I also like having behind my ears scratched. My pride is permanently damaged.”
“I’m sure Delta won’t mind scratching behind your ears.”
“He really doesn’t. However, you can purr. I can’t.”
I laughed. “I’m grateful for my restored hearing, but I am forced to admit that my favorite perk of hybridization is my ability to purr.”
“I can’t blame you.” Viva pressed a button on her armrest and said, “Everyone get into landing positions. I will be taking us to the failed colony now. I’ll begin the atmospheric tests upon landing.”
She brought up a status display, and once all the lights turned green, she dropped her racer into the planet’s atmosphere, zipping along until she drew close to the largestisland. Pristine golden beaches surrounded dense forests and a tall mountain in the middle.
