by neetha Napew
“Zat would be much, much more useful,’ Hrriss said, approvingly.
“Sure thing,’ the tech said. “You know, they’re trying to build something like this on the surface, too. Or so I heard from Commander Frill. He was looking for a decent resonator. I ought to turn him on to this one.
“Well, pool your knowledge, Lieutenant,’ Todd replied.
“No use in redundancy.
“Nossir.”
“Cardiff can’t work here,’ Greene said irritably, looking about contemptuously. “There’s no workspace in this ù barn.”
“Since you’ve now seen what needs to be done,’ Todd said, ignoring Greene, “the Gringg will take us where you can be comfortable. They stayed out of the way on purpose,’ and he flicked a glance at the commander, “first to let you examine the voder without distraction, and two, so I can reassure you how hdspitable they’ve been. Three, so I can warn you that they’re big, Cardiff, really big.”
“I figured they must be from the size of their ship,’ Cardiff said affably. “Won’t bother me.
“Well, you have nothing to fear from them.
“Nothing to fear?” Greene said, his lip curled derisively “With claws that could gut a space shuttle.”
“Which, I remind you, Greene, they haven’t done.
Keep your xenophobia to yourself,’ Todd replied in a harsh voice.
Greene raised a taunting eyebrow, his expression supercilious.
“I’m ready, sir, I think,’ the tech said, slinging one huge tool-case to his bony shoulder and nodding for someone to pick up the big padded one that held his inventory of chips. Todd hefted it.
“Lead me to “em.
Through pictures and pantomime, Todd had managed to convey to Grizz the need of workspace for the technician. Grizz and Panda had shown him one not too far from the shuttle bay, one level up on the belt elevator, and a short dogleg. It was yet another mark of Gringg tact that they met no Gringg on their way to the workroom.
That Todd hadn’t expected but it pleased him very much.
Hrriss, too, grinned as he followed behind the others while Greene kept apprehensively glancing up corridors and around corners. The belt elevator had surprised both Greene and Cardiff though they were familiar with such mechanical lifts.
“What are they like, these Gringg?” Cardiff said, listening to his voice echoing back from the high, smooth ceilings. “I was hoping for a glance, you know.” Todd indicated the door to the workroom allocated to them and opened it. “See for yourself.” Cardiff lifted one foot, froze and stared into the huge room. “Holy fardling afterburners!” Grinning, Todd gave Cardiff a little shove in the back so that he moved on but, as he himself entered, he had to admit this was an impressive scene.
Grizz and Weddeerogh sat beside Chief Engineer Koala, who was working over a low table, tweaking the components of the second voder.
Panda, her scribe, and Rrawrum, the communications officer, lounged around.
At the appearance of the Hayumans. all of them turned towards the door and smiled.
“Great gods! What a set of cutlery!” Cardiff declared, his eyes focused on the long claws Panda had extended in her work. His ebony-dark face had an ashy tint to it, and his already wild hair seemed to stand out further. “D’you suppose they file their nails like screwdrivers? Do I gotta work with all of them? They’re big enough to cramp my style, I think.”
“The silvery one over there’s the engineer,’ Todd said with a chuckle, pointing out Koala. She waved a gigantic paw, and Todd could see the technician’s eyes riveted to the length of claw displayed.
“You all right?” Todd asked, bracing the man’s shoulders with a sturdy arm.
Gamely, Cardiff gulped. “Even with you warning me, I didn’t quite appreciate . . . Hell, I’ve seen a stuffed bear in the museum and I just thought you meant they’d be a little - but whew!” He whistled softly.
“Get on with it,’ Greene muttered.
“Button up, Greene,’ Todd said in a fierce undertone.
Greene glared back with a hatred which he now made no effort to hide but he said nothing. He could contain himself now, in anticipation of the total humiliation of Todd Reeve in the not too distant future. Gringg had never met another species, had they? When Reeve found out the truth . . . When he could not retreat from his untenable position When they had all the proof they needed. Meanwhile he watched as the lanky technician was urged forward to be introduced to the Gringg. Greene momentarily sympathized with the reluctance in every line of the man’s body but then, Cardiff had volunteered.
Greene contented himself with a smile and settled himself on a low counter while Cardiff eased himself down on the floor with Koala, a scribe, and put the voder he’d examined on the table beside the other.
“Now, this is a good piece of work,’ Cardiff said, removing the resonator chip from the heart of the device and brandishing it at Koala.
“The word for good is rehmeh,’ Todd said to him, squatting down alongside. Hrriss joined him, leaving Greene by himself, glaring at the roomful of absorbed Gringg.
“Right,’ Cardiff said, grinning. “Rehmeh, this. Not rehmeh, that. Downright cow patties, that. What you need is a couple of these transformers; a different microphone assembly, something with real range, but solid, too; and a new power supply.” He rummaged in the big rucksack.
“I’ve got the very thing - somewhere in here.” The language of engineering had intrinsic universality.
Circuitry symbols might be different, but the way to diagram a circuit was surprisingly similar. In no time, Cardiff and Koala were communicating easily through the sketches, augmented by nods, smiles, frowns, grunts and much gesticulation, oblivious to all else.
Cardiff’s long, thin fingers assembled components, using hot-tipped tools and minute pliers as Koala made suggestions by pointing and making hand signals.
“Where’s my soldering iron?” Cardiff cried, pawing through his pack.
“I’m sure I packed it. Oh, never mind.
I can use the laser tool.”
“Rehmeh,’ Koala said, at last, giving the Hayuman technician a rubbery-lipped smile of approval.
“Right,’ said Cardiff, straightening up. “Let’s teach these things to talk.” He had made use of the original casings, but shuffled components from both worlds. Out of the kit, he pulled a frequency monitor, and ran the dial up and down the cycles. “This will compress the greater range of Hrruban tones into the range the Gringg can hear, and match Hayuman stuff as well. It’ll also translate any one of the ranges into any one of the other, depending on who it’s set to be worn by. This switch has three settings.”
“Aha,’ said Todd. “Now we’re getting somewhere.” Cardiff strapped one of the voders on to his neck.
“You want them to learn Middle Hrruban first?” He ignored Greene’s belated protest, “Sensible notion since so many of us can get along in that. So that’s what we’re going to record into the memory.” Todd began to recite the words for which he already had the Gringg translations. Grizz recorded the translations in her booming voice when Cardiff pointed to her. Back and forth they went, putting more and more into memory, slowly expanding a GringglMiddle Hrruban glossary. Todd suggested the words for body parts, things in the lab, male, female, baby, and any verb he could think of for which he could express the concept. Grizz responded.
“Right. We’ve got a good starting vocabulary,’ the technician said, happily. “Go ahead, try it.” Todd cleared his throat. “I’m Todd, not Dodh.” His voice came out as a deep bass, but with more inflection than he’d had through Koala’s preliminary model. “Todd.
Todd Reeve.
“Todd,’ the Gringg all repeated one by one. “Todd Reeve.”
“See?” Todd said, with satisfaction. “Supersonics - at least super to them are dropping out, as subsonics are for us.” Hrriss took the other voder, and let Cardiff tune it to him.
“I am Hrriss, and my people are called Hrrubans. His voice
was reproduced, but matching his “his and “5’s without dropping out any of the hissing.
“Hrrissss. Hrrrroobans,’ the Gringg intoned.
“Piece of cake,’ Todd said, spreading his hands, ha pily.
“Peess of kkayyk,’ the Gringg echoed, showing their massive teeth in a grin.
“Don’t encourage them to smile,’ Cardiff said with a twitch of his lean shoulders. “It reminds me of K.P.”
“Well done,’ Hrriss praised him. “Well done by you, too,’ he told Koala, who grunted at the compliment.
“Well, let’s take these things away and replicate “em,’ Todd said.
“Because of the tone differences, anyone who ever wants to talk with the Gringg will have to use one.
That means dozens, if not hundreds of copies. I’ll see what inventory we’ve got and what we can manufacture in a hurry. Maybe even arrange a licence to grid stuff in.”
“Happy to help, if I can,’ Cardiff insisted. “This was fun! Usually, I’m bent fixing electronics blown up by the visiting brass. No offence to you, Commander Greene.” The three visitors looked around.
“Wherre did he go?” Hrriss asked, springing to his feet.
Todd glanced at the Gringg and raised his hands questioningly.
Grizz cocked her head, and addressed a question to the others. No one had seen the other Hayuman leave.
“Wait,’ he said. “Where’s Weddeerogh?” Grizz moved faster then than Todd had yet seen. In a moment, she was on her feet beside a crescent-shaped device on the wall. She fitted a claw into a hole and spoke to a slotted grille on the side. “Ahrgha, geerh vnamshola Hayuman, parghhen va Weddeerogh. Ahrgha, meena lorrangh.” Todd and Hrriss could hear her voice echoing in the hallway.
The announcement, if it was an order to bring back any Hayuman found to be wandering the halls with Grizz s cub, was redundant. Two strange Gringg, one male and one female, appeared in the doorway with a struggling Greene between them. Weddeerogh loped in behind the party, and rolled on to his haunches beside his mother.
Grizz’s eyes were hot with anger, but her voice sounded calm when she turned to Todd with a question.
“Geerh kwaadchhs?”
“No, I mean, morra, that won’t be necessary,’ Todd said, standing up to pinion Greene by the arm. The Gringg male moved away to make room for the tall Hayuman. “I’m taking him out of here now.
“What did she say?”
“She said, should she take you and throw you in the compost heap,’ Todd said, trying to master his fury. “What are you trying to do? Ruin the good work of the last day, sneaking off for a private pry around this ship? You could have asked and Grizz would have seen you had the guided tour. This your idea? Or Barnstable’s?” Greene gave him a look of total contempt. Only the place and company kept Todd’s anger in check. One day he was going to square off against Greene!
“Captain Grizz,’ Todd said formally, switching on the voder as he turned toward her. “We have truly enjoyed our visit aboard the vasharrel.” Grizz murmured approvingly at his correctly enunciated words. “We’ll be speaking again with you soon. May we be guided back to our vamarrel?” “Reh,’ Grizz said, allowing a glint of humour in her eyes.
Weddeerogh trotted up to nose Todd’s hand, then over to Hrriss, and back to his mother.
“See you soon, little guy,’ Todd said, warmly. “All packed up, Cardiff?”
“Lug this, will you?”
“I’ll take it,’ Greene said unexpectedly, stepping forward to sweep the toolkit out of Todd’s grasp.
“As you will,’ Cardiff said amiably then turned. “See you again, Koala,’ and he tipped a salute to the Gringg engineer who waved one large silver paw in response.
They both paused by Greene and Todd gave a curt nod of his head for the commander to precede him.
“I’m sure you know the way to the shuttle bay, Commander,’ Todd said with barely concealed sarcasm. “Or didn’t you get that far before they hauled you back for poking about?” Greene said nothing as he expertly caught the next descending platform of the belt elevator. To Todd that meant he’d gone this far. Had he gone up or down?
“As you pointed out, Reeve, it’s catching the moment and running with it.”
“Even at the expense of violating good will?”
“Good will?” Greene snorted explosively. “Yes, good will! I’ll show you some good will one of these days . He broke off. Now was not the time to let anger overset judgement. He took a deep breath and refused the bait.
Their guide hopped off the platform and Greene followed, knocking the toolkit against the wall as he slightly misjudged his momentum.
Its flap bounced open, and a small, rodlike device fell out.
“Hey, there’s my soldering iron,’ Cardiff said, diving for it before it dropped off the platform. He straightened up to tuck it back into the carryall, and stopped, looking curiously at the remaining contents of the bag. “Shooting stars, what’s that? I never packed that.”
“What?” Todd asked. A growl from the corridor suggested their guide was waiting.
Todd held up one hand to the Gringg before he grabbed for the toolkit strap, to summarily lift it off Greene’s shoulder. Greene twisted away but Hrriss barred his way.
“Hey, what’s the matter. . .” Cardiff wanted to know.
“I want to see what’s in there that you didn’t pack, Cardiff,’ Todd said and jerked at the shoulder strap.
Greene struggled hard but, with a powerful yank, Hrriss stripped the bag from his shoulder while Todd deflected the commander’s blows.
The powerfully built aide had an excellent repertoire of hand-to-hand combat dirty tricks but Todd had been wrestling snakes every year since he was ten. When Greene kicked, Todd hooked his feet out from under him and sat on him while Hrriss continued his inspection of the toolkit.
The Gringg guide came back to see what was holding his party up and growled a question.
“Morra,’ Todd said, grimly, keeping his weight on Greene’s back.
“What’s in it, Hrriss?”
“It looks like a small bomb,’ Hrriss whispered angrily.
“I do not know what zis ssmall device on top is.” Cardiff took a quick look. “Remote control receiver, he said, his face expressionless. “No fuse, just need a radio signal to set it off.” Todd closed his eyes against the arrogance of a man like Greene, too ready to destroy what he couldn’t understand. Though he wanted to close his fingers tightly about Greene’s neck, instead he hauled the commander upright by handful of his tunic.
“So that’s what you intended, skiving off like that? To plant this bomb. When were you going to blow the ship?
While Hrriss and I were still on it? Or when Barnstable gave the orders?” His fingers clenched and unclenched in the tough fabric of Greene’s uniform. Though his eyes did not narrow in fear, the commander watched him warily, giving no resistance to the mauling. “No wonder you let Cardiff come. I should have been suspicious the moment I saw you in the shuttle with him. When, Greene? When was this to be set off?”
“A fail-safe, Reeve, just a fail-safe,’ Greene said, grating the words out. Adding when Todd relaxed his grip slightly, “Should the Gringg suddenly turn hostile.” Disgusted, Todd pushed him out at arm’s length and let go. Greene staggered back against the corridor wall before recovering himself. He then straightened his tunic with careful gestures and smoothed back his hair with nerveless fingers.
“Do marines require their officers to be paranoid?” Todd demanded.
“Paranoid, hell, Reeve! Marines protect! Which is more than you’re doing,’ Greene replied in a low, angry voice and strode down the corridor towards the waiting Gringg.
The two Doonarralans hurried to bracket him, making certain he took no further detours across the huge bay to the shuttle. Silently, Cardiff strode out ahead of them, eager to get into the shuttle and out of the way before the others boarded it. Hrriss managed the Gringg words for thanks and pulled the shuttle door closed.
The small ship waited until the bay doors opened and slowly left the Gringg ship.
“If you’d planted that bomb and the Gringg found it, Greene, all the strides towards understanding that we’ve made today would have been neutralized.”
“Why would they look for something, Reeve? Answer me that! They have such peaceful intent, and you are so honourable, why would they look for anything? But, why won’t you look at matters from another perspective? What if all their compliance is a cover?” Greene demanded in a hard voice. “What if the Gringg are hiding something from us?”
“Hrriss and I were taken over the whole ship, looked wherever we wished with no hindrance or supervision,’ Todd replied, still fuming at the appalling touch with near disaster. “They trust us. We must return that trust and that means you keep your little gadgets off their premises.”
“That little gadget might have saved more lives. . .” the commander began and stopped before he blurted out why he had reason to be concerned.
“For the last time, Greene, this isn’t your business.
This is Alien Relations business and in the interests of Amalgamated Worlds and this invaluable alien contact, I’ll have you denied further access to the Gringg. This time, my father and I have the authority to keep the brass and bureaucracy right out of the loop so we can get on with unarmed diplomacy!” It was with trepidation Second Speaker returned to Hrruba to bring his news to the High Council. He had got no satisfaction from the confrontation engineered by the Hayuman Admiral. Between the medical examinations and invention of a communication device, things had got totally out of hand and the stakes were far too high. In the presence of these immense aliens, Hrrto felt reduced to insignificance although he was of large stature among his own kind. Beings should not be made in such massive forms, should not be permitted to grow to such abnormal proportions. They must not be permitted to come to Hrruba to dwarf even the largest of his people.