"I think we'd better make some coats for Steele and I before we set off. Though a blanket will probably do for her at the moment."
"Agreed. You do that, and I'll go and scout around. I saw water not that far from here, just before we landed." She pointed towards the jungle.
"Don't get lost."
"That's why I'm hoping it's a river."
Caine walked off into the undergrowth, and Orlova made her way into the ruins of the shuttle. It was only then that she began to hear the noises; chirping, crackling, a low undertone of sound coming out of the shadows. Small shapes daring back and forth, strange creatures that were getting bolder. She longed for a pistol, for something, and looked around on the tattered remains of the deck. It didn't take long for her to find what she was looking for, a long piece of metal, the end of which looked satisfactorily jagged. Now armed, she started to work at the seats, tearing off the lining. In the rear compartment, she could see a sealed body bag – the remains of Smythe, sealed by Caine.
Belatedly, she realized that they hadn't conducted even the most cursory check of the atmosphere. The odds of it being breathable without any sort of protection were extraordinary. That nothing in the environment had already killed them counted as something of a miracle, but they'd lost atmospheric integrity so early into the landing that any such testing had been pointless.
A loud groaning sounded from outside, and she burst out wielding her improvised spear, only to see Steele writhing about on the ground, obviously in pain. Caine had managed to bandage her wounds and pull her out of the rain, and there were a couple of improvised splints, but the midshipman looked in a bad way. The medikit was resting on a recently toppled tree; she opened it up, pulled out a strong painkiller, and applied it to Steele's neck; she immediately began to relax, falling into a deep sleep.
Two poles had already been placed on the ground near her; she started to lay sheets of seat cover on top of them, pulling the fake leather tight and tying it on with smaller strips. It was difficult, clumsy work, but after half an hour she'd managed to make at least a makeshift stretcher. Then it hit her; Caine had been gone for half an hour.
"Lieutenant Caine!" she yelled. "Caine!"
There was no reply from the jungle, just a steadily growing cacophony of noise. Sitting down underneath the cracked hull, she started to contemplate her position. Staying here to wait for rescue was all very well, but Alamo was likely in no position to provide it, and they only had a week's rations, and that assumed they could drink the water with minimal preparation. Though given the rain, if it was going to have any really bad effects, it would have happened by now. If anyone on the planet was going to come to their aid, she then had to wonder whether they would be friendly or not. Sitting in the jungle, it was almost easy to forget that the shuttle had been shot down, rather than simply crashing.
There was a loud crack in the undergrowth, followed by a muttered curse; Orlova raised her weapon in readiness, feeling a bit silly; anyone with a gun wouldn't have much trouble dealing with her. She breathed a deep sigh of relief when Caine walked out of the undergrowth, doing a double take when she saw the spear.
"I'd have left the gun if you were that worried," she said.
Lowering the spear, Orlova shook her head, "Damn it, Lieutenant."
"I think you can call me Deadeye if you're going to swear at me." She gestured with a hand, "There's a pretty wide river that way. I was thinking we might follow the side of the river downstream."
"What about building a raft?"
"If you've ever rafted down a river anywhere, now might be the time to tell me."
Smiling, she shook her head, "I've only ever seen a river in movies."
"Walking I know how to do. The stretcher ready?"
"I think so." Orlova looked back at the shuttle. "What about Smythe?"
Caine shook her head, "He's a spaceman. That's where he should be buried. He'd want that. The body bag will serve him for a few weeks. Hopefully by then all of this will be a distant memory."
"It feels wrong to just leave him here."
"We can't bury him in this swamp, Maggie. Deal with the living first. Give me a hand with Steele."
Carefully, tenderly, the two of them eased the wounded midshipman onto the stretcher, a groan escaping her lips as they pushed her over the strut. Orlova rolled up a bit of spacesuit and placed it under her head to provide her some support, and Caine wrapped a piece of safety line loosely around her middle to keep her secure.
"Ready?" Caine asked. Orlova nodded, and the two of them picked up the stretcher, following the path Caine had followed through the jungle. After only a few meters they came across a path; evidently someone else had been here before them, but likely a long time ago. The trail progressed in a long curve towards the sound of rushing water, a noise unfamiliar to either of them. Sweat was beginning to pour down their foreheads, the unceasing rain beating down on them, dripping from leaves and branches. Still they pressed on, grimacing as twigs and vines seemed to almost grab at their ankles.
Finally they came to the banks of the river; water running down in a ferocious torrent, leaves and twigs carried downstream. They could see silver shapes dancing over the bubbling surface, fish of some kind, though almost certainly inedible. The trail crossed over to follow the back of the river both ways, but both tracks seemed identical. There was plenty of life, more than either of them had ever seen before, but of intelligent life there was no sign.
"Which way?"
Caine looked up at the sky; the clouds were still thick and heavy, and if anything, the rain was getting worse. "Let's head downstream, towards the sea."
"I wish we had a map."
"The settlements were all clustered along the rivers. We're bound to run into one eventually."
"That could be a long time."
Down the river bank they walked. Strange green shapes danced from bank to bank, half-leaping, half-flying across the river before disappearing into the undergrowth once again. Creatures skittered out onto the path, looking at the unfamiliar intruders, then vanished again as fast as they had come, and there was a sense that a hundred eyes were watching their every move. Their muscles ached in the unfamiliar gravity, and the load of Steele was only making things worse; Caine was walking with a slight limp that initially she had managed to conceal, but was becoming increasingly obvious.
She turned to Orlova, "Let's rest a minute." Nodding, Orlova slowly lowered the stretcher onto the path, making sure Steele was as comfortable as possible.
"Leg bothering you?"
Caine grunted, "I twisted it in the crash. It's nothing." She gestured up, "Don't look now, but I think it's beginning to get dark."
The clouds were beginning to darken, and the thin ruddy sunlight was fading away quickly. Already Orlova could feel a chill in the air, but the rain was finally beginning to lessen. Off the top of her head, Orlova had no idea how long the day was – or even what time of day it was.
"How long is nightfall?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. I'm really missing my damn datapad right now." She waved her hand. "My watch is still on Alamo time. Not much use here."
"I suppose we ought to make a fire, or something. That's what we do, isn't it?"
Caine laughed, a barking noise running up and down the river, "Some explorers we are. Crash-landed on an alien planet, and all we've got is one gun, your spear, and some zero-g rations. I think we're not going to have a fire tonight. I wouldn't even know where to begin."
Looking down the river, Orlova stood up again, "Let's push on. I'd hate to shiver here tonight and find out that we were only half a mile from a settlement."
Grimacing, Caine nodded, getting to her feet and picking up the stretcher; Steele tossed and turned, crying out in pain again. The path began to get wider, making it easier to walk, and the river grew calmer, now becoming a glassy surface uninterrupted by rocks. As the last of the light began to fade, Orlova spotted something glistening in the distance, as the path curved
around out of sight.
The two of them hastened along, making use of the little remaining daylight, and turned the corner to see a prefabricated shelter built into the path with a long metal pier sticking out into the river, cabling all tangled around. The shelter had a pair of narrow bunks, under which were stacked several boxes, but the language on most of them was unfamiliar. With relief, they pulled the stretcher in, resting it down carefully.
"Told you," Orlova said, grinning. She ran her hand across her soggy hair, water still running down in rivulets. The rain continued to rattle down on the roof, but it felt good to be in the dry. Caine was starting to rummage through the boxes, trying to find something recognizable that they might be able to use, but she didn't seem to be having much luck. All of it was in the same language, and the cartons and tins could contain anything.
Holding up a can, Caine said, "Want to try pot-luck?"
"Not while we still have rations. If we're stopping here, I'll go and see if we can drink the water." Pulling the testing kit out of her pocket, she stepped back out into the rain, dipping the sample rod into the water, watching the lights run up and down the side of the box as the analysis began. Tapping her foot impatiently, she was rewarded by a series of green lights running down the side.
"I don't believe it," she said.
"Drinkable?"
"Yes."
Caine shook her head, "Dietz had a theory that this planet might be terraformed. I think we've got the proof of it. I wouldn't be surprised if we could eat the food as well, though I wouldn't care to bet my life on it."
"How long can this planet have been settled, then? No humans can possibly have been here for more than eighty years or so."
"This jungle took a hell of a lot longer than eighty years to grow. There's something strange going on here." Their discussion was punctuated by another groan from Steele, "We've got bigger problems, anyway. She needs real medical attention, not a half-empty medikit."
"She'll have to live without it tonight." It was getting pitch black outside, their eyes slowly adapting to the darkness. The noises from the jungle were getting louder, at least that was how it felt to Orlova. She looked longingly at the bed, but then saw Caine grimace from her leg. "I'll take first watch. Give me the revolver."
Caine shook her head, "Last time I checked, I was senior here, Maggie. You get some rest."
"Sorry, Deadeye. I'm going to commit insubordination and tell you to get some sleep; that leg doesn't look great."
The lieutenant looked down at her leg for a second, nodded, and pulled the revolver out of her pocket, passing it butt-first to Orlova. She carefully checked that it was loaded – a good habit to keep – then tucked it into her belt where she could get at it quickly.
"Wake me up in four hours, Alamo time."
"Will do." She looked out at the rain. "Don't expect me to stand out in that, I'll be here in the lee of the door. What about Steele?"
Caine slowly lowered herself onto the bunk, grimacing a little at the hard surface; there wasn't much give in the padding. "I think she's probably as well off where she is than if we try and manhandle her again."
Orlova nodded. "Sleep."
"Aye, aye, ma'am," Caine said. She lay back, facing the roof, and closed her eyes. Within a few minutes a low rumbling sound was coming from her, almost drowning out the rain, and Orlova shook her head, making a mental note never to share a room with her if it could possibly be avoided.
She turned her attention back to the darkness, longing for some night-vision goggles, or even a simple flashlight. The rain continued steadily, and a wind began to pick up, chilling her to the bone. Remembering that at least some of the ration packs were self-heating, she pulled one out of a pocket and crushed it, mixing the chemicals, then held it between her hands. Pulling the straw out of the tab, she eagerly sucked the contents out. The meal – it was too dark to see what it was, and there was certainly no way she could tell from the taste – was bland, but it was at least warm, though she felt the lack of something solid to sustain her.
Gradually, the rain finally stopped, and the clouds parted, at least a little, revealing an eerie silver light shining through, reflecting from the water; the companion planet, the co-orbital body. It cast a strange glow over the jungle, and only seemed to increase the activity around her. The darkest corners of her imagination started to conjure up strange creatures hiding in the forest, lying in wait for her, and she forced herself to push them away, to focus on the task at hand.
She shivered again. Her clothes were still soaking wet, and it wasn't likely they were going to dry out any time soon. She'd bet her next month's pay that it would start to rain again in the morning. That seemed to be the way this planet went. Ripples began to appear in the water, and a new noise began to sound – a whirling, mechanical noise that could only be some sort of an engine. Reaching for her revolver, she peered around the door, and could just make out a boat in the moonlight. This had been a day of firsts; first jungle, first river, and now first riverboat.
The craft had long, smooth lines, and a whirling wheel at the back that dipped into the water; smoke fired out of a long, thin tube from the middle of the craft, and the deck was covered in boxes and crates. She could just make out a couple of people standing on the deck, both of them carrying what could only be rifles, and an unfamiliar flag dangled from a pole, loose and limp but slowly moving in the breeze. Quietly, she turned back into the shelter and began to shake Caine, who woke with a start, her eyes fixing on Orlova.
"That's got to be the shortest four hours..."
"Sshhh!" Orlova replied. "Someone's coming. A boat, down the river. Heading in the direction we were walking." Caine started to get up, but Orlova but a hand on her shoulder, "Deadeye, they're armed."
"In this jungle, that could be sensible."
"How do you want to handle this."
"Give me the revolver."
Nodding, Orlova passed Caine the revolver. Without looking back, she walked out to the river bank, pointed it at the sky, and fired twice, then twice again, before putting it back in her belt. She then began to wave her arms and shout; the boat had obviously seen her, and turned towards the pier, the river chopping up behind it as its speed began to increase.
"What the hell?" Orlova said.
Caine shrugged, "We're stuck on a hostile planet in the middle of nowhere with no real food and someone badly needing medical attention. Right now our situation couldn't be much worse."
The boat grew closer, and one of the men tossed a cable towards the pier with practiced ease, then leapt ashore and pulled it in. The other was obviously keeping them both covered with his gun; Caine and Orlova held their hands well away from their belts, the latter kicking her spear away from her. The men were swarthy, with mustaches dominating their faces, and wearing tough, well-worn coats and hats.
"Qayan bulasız?" one of them said, first to Caine then to Orlova. They looked at each other, shrugging.
"I'm Lieutenant Caine, of the Triplanetary Confederation," Caine tried, but neither of them could understand. At least, neither of them admitted it. They pointed their guns at them, then at the boat; it was obvious where they wanted to go. Caine shook her head, pointing inside the shelter, the one on the jetty carefully backed inside, looking around, then looked again at Orlova.
"Tatarça söyläşäsezme?" he said, to their general bafflement.
The one on the boat pulled up a hatch and barked something down it, and two others came out, both fairly young women, similarly dressed to the men. One of them went into the shelter while the other took out a gun of her own. There was a brief consultation, and the two men went into the shelter, carefully bringing out the stretcher and putting it on the boat. They then gestured more urgently at the boat, and the pair began to walk on board. Before she could step on-board, one of the men reached out a hand; she pulled out the revolver and gave it to him, whereupon he nodded and allowed them on.
"Well, at least we're going somewhere," Caine s
aid to Orlova, who shook her head.
"Qabatlıyalır idígízmí?" said one of the women in a quiet voice. Orlova looked at Caine, then sat down on the deck, head against a box, and closed her eyes. Either they were safe or they were in a worse mess; either way she might as well get some sleep.
Chapter 14
"Do you want to talk, sir?" Mulenga asked from the co-pilot's seat for about the tenth time. Marshall was beginning to regret bringing him along on his investigation of the asteroid, but the astrogator had insisted. In the politest possible way, of course. He'd been a bit surprised that both Dietz and Cunningham had not only agreed that he should lead this team, but that they had encouraged him to do so, while they began their investigation into the satellites. Quinn was sitting at the back with Midshipman Zabek; he was looking forward to potentially getting his hands on some interesting technology.
"Not now, thank you."
Shaking his head, Mulenga replied, "I think you probably should."
"They're alive. I'd know if they were dead."
"They being Caine."
"They being my crew. At least some of them made it down to the deck; Caine or Orlova had the skill to control the shuttle in that dive. Even Steele might have pulled it off." He turned to the lieutenant, "This isn't me being irrational, this is my analysis of the evidence."
"I would not presume to argue with you." He paused, then said, "Is..."
Interrupting, Marshall said, "Alamo is going to remain in orbit until we recover our crew. Or their bodies, if it comes to it. We're not leaving them behind. And my history with Caine has nothing to do with it."
Mulenga shook his head, "You wouldn't be the captain I knew if it did. I know this isn't personal, sir. So does Dietz, and Cunningham, for that matter; you would feel the same way no matter who was down there."
"Damn right."
"That does not necessarily make this the correct decision."
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