Ninth Orb

by Kaitlyn O'Connor

  They were met by curious colonists on their return.

  Eden wasn’t surprised. Even the more fearful among them were anxious to get off the ship for a little while if it was safe enough to do so. After dividing the colonists into lots of twenty five, she allowed the first group to descend to explore the city and enjoy the openness of being beyond the metal bulkheads of the ship and walking in real gravity and atmosphere rather than artificial.

  They began the meeting with the caveat that the plans they were making might not actually be implemented, but it seemed everyone was now willing to agree that there were only two choices--stay or return. They certainly weren’t equipped to try an alternate planet for colonization. The construction materials they’d brought had been expended on building New Savannah and they would be reduced to living in mud and stick huts if they tried to colonize another planet.

  That being the case, everyone had begun to feel very possessive about the planet they’d staked out to claim as their own.

  Eden had a pounding headache long before they’d managed to settle much more than a quarter of the territory among the sects. Deciding finally that it was enough to agree on the buildings that would be used for specific work, Eden adjourned the meeting.

  “If we do decide to stay, we can settle disputes over living quarters as they arise. I’m sure there will be some--there always are. But everyone has options and we should be able to settle things agreeably enough.”

  The sector leaders didn’t seem completely satisfied with that ruling, but they accepted it and departed to discuss the proceedings with the colonists in their sectors.

  Eden merely sat gazing absently at the far bulkhead for a while, rubbing her temples to ease the tension.

  The trek had seemed endless. She supposed, in the back of her mind, she’d always known that when they arrived she was going to have her hands full, but it had seemed like such a distant possibility that it hadn’t actually seemed real to her. They hadn’t even been orbiting a full day yet and already she was beginning to feel the weight of her office.

  Abruptly, she pushed herself away from the conference table and rose. She couldn’t presently deal with the root of the problem and until she could she wasn’t going to borrow worries. Striding from the council chambers she paused in the corridor for several moments and finally headed toward the bridge. Without surprise, she discovered that the viewing screens were on and the crew was studying the alien installation.

  Ivy’s second in command, Lt. Sarah Carter, glanced up as Eden stepped from the lift. “I didn’t expect to see you back so soon.”

  Eden smiled faintly. “As tempting as it was to stay a while,” she responded wryly, “it’s damned uncomfortable and I thought it best to settle the territory as soon as possible.”

  Sarah’s dark red brows rose. “You’re going forward?”

  “Any word from Houston?” Eden countered.

  “Dead air so far, but I don’t expect a response for a few hours yet.”

  Nodding, Eden crossed to stand closer to the viewing screens, studying them. “You’ve been transmitting the images to them?”

  “I haven’t been screening them, if that’s what you’re asking.”

  Eden glanced at her. “It didn’t occur to me that you would. What did you make of the activity when we arrived?”

  Sarah frowned. “Honestly?”

  Eden smiled thinly. “I’d like an honest evaluation, yes. Sugar coating isn’t going to be very helpful.”

  “They looked hopeful and horrified at the same time, if you ask me--assuming I correctly interpreted the expressions I saw.”

  Eden frowned. “That sort of described our own feelings on the matter, but I doubt it was for the same reasons. Hopefulness to see some action, you think?”

  Sarah grinned. “My guess would be not military action.”

  Eden’s reaction was purely feminine. It embarrassed her. She felt her cheeks redden. “I think that’s just wishful thinking on your part,” she retorted.

  Sarah chuckled. “Maybe, but it hasn’t been so long that I’ve forgotten what a man looks like when he has fucking on his mind.” She got up from her seat and crossed the deck to stand next to Eden, pointing. “These here, along the walls--the soldiers didn’t really give much away about what they were thinking one way or the other. The workers, that’s a different matter altogether. Hardly a peep out of them the entire time we’ve been studying them, then your group arrived and all of a sudden they were chattering like magpies. The computer collected a good bit of the speech patterns.”

  Pausing, she turned to the communications officer. “Give us a playback, Rheames.”

  Eden frowned as she listened. It was a relief to discover that the aliens seemed to have vocal chords similar to humans. The words were just so much gibberish to her ears, and yet the patterns and tones were enough like human speech that it might almost have been an Earth language she was hearing. “Any clue yet what they might have been talking about?”

  “The computer hasn’t finished collating the data yet, but it seems certain they realized you were all females. What isn’t clear to me is what they made of it. As I said, they looked hopeful and at the same time horrified.”

  “Maybe because we’re not the same species?”

  Sarah frowned. “Maybe. I got the feeling they felt threatened because it was females--which wasn’t something I would’ve expected. I don’t know why and I’m probably wrong, but I still sensed that.”

  Eden digested Sarah’s comments, trying to decide whether she could place any faith in the woman’s intuition. Finally, she dismissed it. Even if there was something to Sarah’s assessment, neither of them had a clue of why the aliens might feel threatened by them and if they did they were being surprisingly non-aggressive about it. “I assume from that that there’s still been no sign of females among the aliens?”

  Sarah shook her head. “The computer did a count. What you see is all there is--about six hundred altogether--which means they outnumber us about three to one, they’re a hell of a lot bigger physically besides which they seem to be, on average, a good bit stronger than human males, and from what I can see they aren’t far enough behind us technologically to give us a big advantage either. Let’s hope they remain as non-aggressive as they appear to be at this point because I’m not sure the shields would hold against a determined assault from an army like that.”

  Eden merely nodded, trying to keep her grim thoughts to herself. As she watched, the aliens seem to pause almost as one. Excitement rippled through them after a moment and she could see their mouths moving in speech, could see them straining to stare toward New Savannah in the distance, though she doubted they had the capability of seeing so far when she’d already noticed the one with the field glasses.

  She assumed they were field glasses, or something like that anyway.

  “The new group just arrived,” Sarah pointed out, drawing Eden’s attention toward another screen.

  Eden studied the group that appeared on the pad and then turned her attention to the aliens again. “Maybe it’s the particle transporter that unnerves them? I mean, if they aren’t as advanced as we are they might never have seen anything like it. Watching us appear and disappear would be enough to scare them if they don’t understand it.”

  Sarah shrugged. “Maybe. You see what I meant, though?”

  “I do. Again, though, their reaction is strongly reminiscent of our own--excitement to be here, disturbed to discover we aren’t alone, and that the company is strange. I doubt they’re any more accustomed to seeing aliens than we are--and I don’t think I would’ve been less unnerved if the colony had turned out to be all females.”

  Feeling vaguely disappointed that she hadn’t managed to catch a glimpse of that intriguing male with the dark thatch of hair, Eden turned at last to leave. “When the computer breaks the language down, let me know? I’ll be in my quarters.”

  “Will do.”

  * * * *

  By the
time the computer had cracked the language barrier, Eden had come to an immutable conclusion. They could not go forward until they knew where they stood with the aliens on the other side of the valley.

  As predicted, Houston gave the project a green light, suggesting she negotiate a treaty with the ‘other colony’. She would’ve been lying if she’d tried to say she wasn’t the least bit unnerved at the prospect, but she knew her duty as the leader of the colony included risking her neck if necessary to barter for peace. Accepting the inevitability of it, she put the electronic technicians to work developing a light weight translator.

  It took almost a week, New Georgia time, to perfect the device to something useable, but the finished product was worth the wait. Lightweight, it had a piece that fit firmly across the head of the wearer, an earpiece to translate alien to English, and a mouth piece that translated English to alien.

  Ivy volunteered to accompany her.

  As grateful as she was to have Ivy’s backing, Eden wasn’t certain that it was best for the colony to risk both their political/administrative and military leader at the same time. Ivy smiled thinly. “I don’t know about you, but I’m planning on making it back in one piece even if they do open fire and you’ll have a better chance of doing so if I’m there to back you up.”

  After a rather long winded and occasionally heated discussion among the council members, it was finally decided that three sector leaders would accompany Eden and Ivy--Deb Pugh, Med Techs, Stacy Sessions, Engineers, and Liz Chin, Investigative Sciences--and a squad would go for a show of military strength--just enough fire power to protect the politicians without seeming aggressive--they hoped.

  A shuttle was detached from the U.S.S. Plymouth to carry the emissaries to a position close enough to try to begin negotiations in a clearing near the stream that almost perfectly bisected the valley.

  Eden’s stomach was in knots long before they reached the agreed upon ‘neutral’ ground. It was a jolt to step from the shuttle into the unprotected climate of the planet, for the city was climate controlled.

  Here, nature reigned. Eden hadn’t breathed anything except conditioned air in many years, and never anything quite like the natural air of New Georgia. It had been many, many years since she had felt the heat of a sun, the brush of natural breezes along her skin or the unevenness and yielding of soil and vegetation and natural stones beneath the soles of her feet.

  The myriad of sensations that pelted her as she made her way down the gangplank and trod the new world for the first time distracted her momentarily from her anxiety.

  After years of strolling around a ship the next thing to naked, the jumpsuit she’d chosen to wear felt as uncomfortably restrictive to her movements as the elements around her and she moved stiffly to stand at the edge of the clearing and lift her head toward the walls of the alien fortress. When the others had assembled behind her, she tested her translator, setting it to a volume she thought they would be able to hear in the alien compound.

  “I am Eden Chisholm, leader of the colonists of Earth who have come to settle here. We hope to negotiate a peaceful co-existence with your own colony.”

  She saw a long row of faces turned down at her, but none moved, either aggressively or otherwise. “We have come to speak with your leader.”

  That comment caused a ripple. The men along the top wall exchanged confused glances. After a few minutes the faces disappeared one by one.

  Uneasy, Eden glanced behind her at the other women. “What do you think?”

  Ivy was studying the wall, her face impassive, but the tension in her stance was unmistakable. “They haven’t fired. That’s always a good sign.”

  A minute passed, then more minutes. Eden shifted uncomfortably, almost sorry she’d bothered to dress for the occasion. As accustomed as she was to the ease of movements without the restriction of clothing, she had to wonder if she could flee weighed down with boots and draped with heavy cloth. She felt moisture pop from her pores, as well, as the minutes dragged past. The cloth began to stick to her.

  She had almost reached the point of ordering everyone back into the shuttle when a creak of metal drew her attention. An opening appeared at the base of the wall.

  “Ready ladies,” Ivy said quietly.

  At her command, the squad took up defensive positions, lifting their weapons.

  “Don’t get trigger happy. This is still a truce until I say otherwise,” Ivy reminded them just as Eden was about to comment on their stance.

  Almost another minute passed before a handful of soldiers emerged through the opening. Without hesitation, they marched smartly across the clearing, halting when they reached the banks on the opposite side of the stream.

  Eden’s heart was beating unpleasantly fast. It leapt into overtime when she saw that the soldier in the forefront was the one that she’d studied so curiously before.

  “I am Baen.”

  It was silly, and poor timing at that, but a thrill went through Eden that was totally feminine and wholly appreciative as his deep voice rolled over her. She felt a blush rising. “You are the leader?”

  He looked disconcerted. “We have no leader.”

  The comment stunned Eden to silence. She exchanged a questioning look with Ivy. When she returned her attention to the soldiers, she saw that they were staring with unabashed curiosity at her and the women around her. There was something in their eyes that gave her pause--fear and hopefulness. “I don’t understand,” Eden said finally. “This is a colony?” she asked, gesturing toward the walled community behind the soldiers.

  Again, the leader looked disconcerted. “It is not. We have no queens.”

  Eden felt her jaw sag. No women? Or did he mean no leaders? Obviously, it was going to take more than a language translator to make communications possible. “This is … a military installation?”

  Baen frowned and glanced at the others as if he was seeking help. “No,” he responded finally. “We are kzatha.”

  The word failed to translate and Eden hadn’t a clue of what it might mean. “What position do you hold?” she asked finally.

  “I am dominant soldier.”

  That sounded like leader to Eden, but he obviously didn’t interpret it that way. She glanced at the other council members, wishing she dared discuss the matter with them, but she didn’t want to invite the aliens to understand the discussion and she didn’t think it would be a good idea to turn off the translators.

  “You are without males?”

  The question caught Eden by surprise. Her head whipped around so quickly in response that she felt a bone crack in her neck. “What?”

  Baen frowned. His gaze flickered from Eden to Ivy and then to the squad members. “These are female soldiers.”

  The concept was obviously boggling his mind. She wasn’t about to tell him anything one way or the other, however. The aliens might decide that the colony would be easy to take if their doubts were removed about the presence of any males.

  “We came to negotiate peace,” she said, tightness creeping into her voice. “Our bots have built our city. We do not wish to fight with our neighbors over territory.”

  Baen and the others exchanged glances. “Very well,” Baen responded. With that, he turned abruptly and strode toward the fortress once more.

  Eden stared after him and the others slack jawed.

  “What the hell was that?” Ivy demanded, equally stunned.

  Eden dragged her gaze from the retreating backs of the alien soldiers. “I don’t know. Did he say ‘ok, fine?’ or was it just my imagination?”

  Med Tech Deborah Pugh spoke. “He seemed to think the discussion has been concluded.”

  “Let’s go back. I don’t see any point in standing around here melting,” Stacy Sessions commented.

  “Sweating,” Ivy corrected, smiling faintly.

  “Whatever. It feels like melting.”

  Feeling strangely let down, Eden followed as the other council members filed up the gangplank once more.
She paused at the top, studying the aliens along the fortress wall.

  Baen was among them again. Even at this distance, Eden recognized him.

  Shaking her head, she stepped inside and settled in her seat for the trip back to New Savannah, wondering what they had accomplished in their attempt to form a treaty with the other colonists.

  * * * *

  “Was the meeting a success?”

  Eden exchanged a glance with the women who’d accompanied her. “It was not a failure,” she responded cautiously. “Liz, you’re in behavioral sciences--what did you make of it?”

  Liz’s finely arched black brows rose almost to her hairline. “I’m supposed to make an educated evaluation based on that?”

  Eden scowled at her. “Take a wild guess then,” she snapped.

  Liz considered it and finally shrugged. “Everything about them indicates a civilization that’s fairly advanced--maybe not as advanced technologically as we are, but certainly well beyond a primitive or simple social structure. This is a society that doesn’t seem to correlate with anything I’ve seen before, though, or studied. Their spokesman said they had no leader, but also that the colony they’d established wasn’t military in nature.

  “By our standards, it would seem to be just that, though. If he wasn’t lying, and I saw nothing to indicate that he was intentionally doing so, then I’d have to guess that their entire social structure is basically military. And, if they’re not here to make or prevent war, then the colony was constructed as it is merely for security purposes.

  “That seems to suggest they’re as alien to this world as we are and aren’t certain what they might come up against--and I’m still confused about his assertion that they have no leader and they’re not here to establish a colony.”

  Eden, seated at the head of the council table, leaned back in her seat, tapping her fingers impatiently on the surface of the table. “I’m more interested in a threat assessment at this point.”

  Liz studied her for several moments in silence. It was obvious she didn’t like being placed in the position of having to make such an important evaluation on so little. “They don’t appear to represent a threat to our colony. There was nothing overtly hostile in their behavior--as we all saw--nothing that I saw that was sly, or furtive. They seemed more … disconcerted by us than alarmed and I think that’s because our social structure confused them.