Page 50 of Experimental Voyage
“Volcanic?” I asked.
“Dormant. It was a hotspot once upon a time, but the spot closed. All the islands are hotspot islands, and we’re not sure why the hotspots close. We suspect that the planet has an unusual plate system, which doesn’t subduct or thrust upwards like on most planets. Subduction faults tend to be deep oceanic, and the thrust faults tend to be what create continents.”
“Convergent boundaries,” I murmured, eyeballing the mountain. “And since there are no thrust faults, there are no mass mountain ranges, so no real opportunities for continents to properly form?”
“That is the current theory. And without the typical fault lines, various boundaries, or continental plates, we’re left with a water world reliant on deep volcanic activity to create small sections of land.”
“And likely volatile sections of land.” Viva drew the ship closer to the island, and I spotted where something had torn through the forest relatively recently, tearing down branches, scattering leaves, and even uprooting some trees. “A major storm system?” I guessed.
“Either that or a massive wave. Either is possible. The failed colony is far enough up the mountain’s slopes to survive through anything other than monstrous wave conditions.”
I eyed the beach, which had gentle waves lapping at the shore. “Truth be told, I’m a little worried about the ocean now.”
“I’m less worried about the ocean than I am worried about what lives in the ocean,” she admitted, and she flew the ship in the direction of the mountain.
I spotted the ruins of the failed colony solely due to the ship. Somehow, the silvery surface repelled the foliage, which waged afierce battle to overtake the site. “Why aren’t the plants growing on the ship?”
“Colony ships, like this one, are coated in a substance that is rather toxic to most plant and animal life.Homo-sapiensneed to wear protective gear to handle the exterior panels. Ships treated this way are considered to be dead vessels on their final voyage, designed to land and become the equivalent of a bunker. The colonists would have known to avoid touching it.” Viva wrinkled her nose. “Fortunately, that practice has been abandoned. I, among many rescue rigs, filed countless complaints about how the coating made it impossible to rescue such vessels in space. Those derelicts aredangerous, and we have to destroy the coatings before we can board. And the process of destroying the coating usually results in all life on board being lost.”
“What a shortsighted decision,” I muttered.
“It really is. So, avoid the ship and anywhere where there are dead zones. The coating may have leached into the ground around the ship. When we enter the ship, we’ll do so wearing safety gear, and we’ll detox the gear. That coating won’t kill us, but it’ll make us miserable. Itwillkill plant life rather effectively.”
I stared at the vessel, nodding my agreement with her statement. “That coating contains an herbicide among other things?”
“If it can kill someone or something, the coating has it. That shit is toxic. I hate working with ships that have been coated. With luck, the entry is open and we can access the interior without much worry. I’m not expecting much. It’s been over a decade since Waldren and his sister were rescued. But that said, there’s little as lethal as a surprise when exploring a failed colony, so let’s avoid surprises.”
“That sounds like a good idea.”
After a few minutes, Delta and the Veloc joined us on the bridge, and everyone stared at the shining ship. Delta sighed and shook his head. “Remind me to make certain Waldren and his sister are tested for residual toxicity. Thatcouldaccount for some of their behavior problems.”
“They have been tested,” Fogali said, and he flattened his crest. “Waldren had irreparable damage, and his sister wasn’t much better. Fortunately, the issues can be controlled with medications. His sister has hormone production issues, but she’s medically regulated, which restored her fertility. Veloc genetics in her offspring help counter any remnant issues. Waldren’s issues are in his emotional regulation, which is obvious enough.”
I frowned. “His grumpiness is due to brain damage from the ship’s coating?”
“In part,” the Veloc admitted.
Like his brother, Yulgali flattened his crest, and he bobbed his head. After a moment, I realized there was something different about the way he moved, and I guessed the conversation distressed him.
“Was anyone at all able to help him?”
“He’s improved a great deal over the years,” Viva informed me. “But half of his problems are psychological, half of them are due to that damned coating. We will evaluate the ship from a safe distance, wear safety gear beyond the leach zone, and gather knowledge. But it’s important you understand precisely what you’re getting into. Science can’t cure everything, as you well know.”
“But I was cured,” I replied, gesturing to my ears. “I can hear now.”
“Ah, but you still have that shiftgem embedded in your brain. That, for the record, is going to make piloting fun for you. And I don’t mean the good sort of fun. I know what I had to do tomake my ship safe for you; you’re uncharted waters, and science simply doesn’t know what some ship systems will do to someone with a shiftgem shard embedded in their brain. I had to make certain every system on the ship had a tolerable resonance level before bringing you aboard. Waldren had to do the same. He defined what it means to be a grump doing those overhauls to his ship. Of course, I don’t blame him for that. He had to do the overhauls while in space.”
“He left for Schwana Major before knowing the shard couldn’t be removed?”
“Precisely so.”
Interesting. “But we figured out the shard goes inert at the first sign of resonance.”
“He didn’t know that when he did the overhauls. But that’s Waldren for you. He cares, and he hides that he cares through being a grump. I haven’t worked with him much,” the hybrid confessed. “But I do like him, even when he’s at his grumpiest. But I’m xenodiverse, and Delta’s convinced I can’t actually dislike anyone who isn’t a trafficker.”
Delta smiled at his wife. “It’s true. She more than makes up for her compassion when a trafficker crosses her path. She’s developed a reputation.”
“Shoot a trafficker out of a tree once,” she muttered.
