Vast Mantis Read online

  Other than his few club visits with Shao, Silas essentially vanished. Ximon assumed he was looking for updated information from his head office or hunting down contacts who might have more information. In a way, Ximon did the same. He visited the local KSF Headquarters and used the mission code Jantzi had given him to request any updated scan data for the Orrarra and Verravroge Sectors. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much new on the planets they were most interested in, but there were some tidbits from those sectors.

  Aside from Raiza’s searching and Ximon’s checks, the two of them enjoyed a couple of quiet days together in a nice bed and breakfast, just relaxing – hiking, shopping, and lounging about. It was quite comfortable.

  Ximon sent out a reminder and show time the night before their departure and, to his pleasant surprise, everyone reported before that time, apparently sober. From experience, he’d built in a little ‘cushion,’ so they then had a bit of time to settle in and stow their purchases before takeoff.

  They took off and headed rimward in the direction of the Irapce sector. They stopped in the Edorener System to refuel and pick up more cargo bound for the station they had helped set up in the Zased System. As promised, the cargo was in place on the orbiting station, so they didn’t have to go down and land on the planet. That was nice because every time they had landed on the planet to get cargo for this project it had been a bit of a gaggle.

  They then went through the Zanerus System. They didn’t stop but refueled. While in system, Ximon checked in with their friends at the base they had helped set up on Zanerus-4. The brilliant, but hard to understand Vir was still running the station and the ever calm and helpful Rotoz was still keeping everyone from killing each other. However, both Judyta and Kuba had left, having been replaced by a guy named Thomasy and one of the Automated Scout Outpost Robots (ASORs) the crew had helped set up on the Zased Station. Ximon couldn’t help but think that the ASORs were proving more productive and stable than people for this kind of job on an isolated station.

  After Zanerus they entered the Irapce Sector and headed for the Irapce System itself, keeping their time refueling in the 535-336 system as short as possible. A couple years back, they’d almost been destroyed by severe solar activity there and Ximon didn’t like to linger. From there they headed to the Irapce System to visit the temporary base, drop cargo, and hopefully spend some time on the planet.

  During the month it took to them to get to Irapce, Silas continued his training sessions and they helped to keep everyone somewhat occupied. Ximon noted that Silas seemed to spend a lot of time with Shao, but also seemed to like Elsbeth.

  Raiza came to Ximon one day with a concerned, serious expression on her face. “Ximon, I feel I should mention an issue which holds the potential for conflict amongst the crew.”

  Ximon was confused but concerned enough to listen. “Oh? What’s up?”

  “I’ve noted some of Silas’s interactions with Shao and with Elsbeth. Mantis then helped to confirm what my training in human interactions made me suspect. It appears that both Shao and Elsbeth are occasionally spending extended time in Silas’s cabin. I can’t be sure, but I believe that both are having sexual relations with Silas. From my understanding of human behavior, it seems probable that one, or both, will view this as an inappropriate violation of the unwritten rules of sexual behavior. If so, the parties that take offense may exhibit anger towards the others involved. I can’t judge in this case, but historical data suggests that such anger could be extreme and possibly even violent. As such, it could be detrimental to the completion of this mission, the maintenance of the crew, or the safe operation of the ship. Would you concur?”

  Ximon was stunned at the situation and at Raiza’s great concern. “Wow, love, that’s quite an observation. Do you have any indication that they either or both know about the other’s involvement?”

  “No, dear, I didn’t think it was my place to inform them.”

  “Oh, you’re probably right on that. In many cases it’s best not to be the one to tell people in this type of situation. They’re often not thankful to know.”

  “But might not telling them now reduce the damage?”

  “You’re probably right in this case. I’d suggest you pull Elsbeth aside and tell her, in private, as a friend, that you think Silas is also seeing Shao. Then, see how she reacts. In my experience, Elsbeth tends to avoid drama, so telling her might be the safest way to assess the situation.”

  “If you think that’s wise.”

  “I’m the last person to claim expertise on human female reactions. But, dear, I think this is the best way to reduce the likelihood of the dangers you mentioned.”

  “I see. I will endeavor to talk to her today and will let you know what occurs.”

  “That sounds good. When you do, please do not mention that you discussed it with me, nor that you involved Mantis. Having more crew members involved might further upset her.”

  “I understand. I will let you know.”

  As she left, Ximon shook his head at the bizarre issues that he got dragged into as Captain. On the bright side, he admired her beautiful backside.

  That night, Raiza gave him an update at bedtime. She had discussed the issue with Elsbeth. Elsbeth was already aware that Shao, too, had slept with Silas. Raiza quoted Elsbeth directly, even adjusting her voice slightly to sound more like Elsbeth, “‘Yeah, I know that Shao is sleeping with him. I got my little bit of variety, had fun, and proved I can still interest a flesh-and-blood man. But, he’s more interested in Shao and she’s got an empty bed to come home to otherwise, so she’s welcome to him. No problem here. She can have the ‘win’ with Silas – Peter will take care of me.’”

  Ximon was a bit relieved. “Well, that’s good to hear. I’m glad that Elsbeth is staying low-drama. Thanks for checking into that.”

  “It was interesting. I find the human thought process on sex to be quite complex.”

  “Well, it certainly is. It’s caused a great deal of trouble throughout history. All I know is that I could use some about right now.”

  “Well, Ximon. It’s nice to know that some people are simple.”

  “I’m going to overlook that apparent sleight for now because I want you in this bed.”

  Throughout the month, Raiza and Elsbeth continued work on Euclidia and the body they had for him. They painstakingly installed and configured the components Raiza had acquired. Their tests seemed to all be showing positive, so they finally decided to do the install. The process involved Raiza, Elsbeth, Peter, Mantis, and, of course, Euclidia, who was conscious throughout. The operation proved long, but fairly successful. When they were done, the autonomous control portion of Euclidia’s brain could control the movements of the body. He could sit, stand, walk, and manipulate objects.

  Unfortunately, though, the overall movements were somewhat sluggish, exhibiting unexpected lag and his left leg didn’t have full range of motion, so he walked with a limp. Raiza and Elsbeth in particular were frustrated, but Euclidia expressed great appreciation for their efforts and said he was more than happy with the upgrade. Raiza refused to let that stand forever. She gathered additional test data and tried to analyze the likely causes for the malfunction. Ultimately, she decided that they couldn’t fix the problems in the near term, but decided to have Alzroid, at Zased Station, take a look and see what ze could find.

  When they got to the Irapce System, they received several messages from Major Kanebti and others Ximon had met in the Irapce System Guard when they were there representing the KSF in an Irapce exercise. They all heartily invited Mantis to come visit for a few days, staying at the same (very nice) villa they had stayed in previously. All they asked was that the crew give a couple lectures at an ongoing Guard Academy course and sit on a couple of panel discussions. Ximon knew that the whole crew had enjoyed Irapce when they had visited previously, so he agreed to the visit without consulting them. He informed them they would arrive in two days because they first had to visit the ‘temporary
base’ the KSF had set up. The base was in a fixed point over Irapce-5, so it was ‘in system,’ but wasn’t exactly close to Irapce proper. Ximon assumed that was a concession to politics, as some of the locals might assume the Republic was ‘taking over’ if they had a base right on, or near, the main planet.

  Ximon notified the temporary base they were enroute and informed the crew of their plans. He also told Elsbeth, Shao, and Raiza to ‘dust off’ the topics they had briefed during their exercise on Irapce.

  The temporary base, formally known as the “KSF Cooperation Mission” was not incredibly impressive. Its core was a 1000-ton merchant ship, with a temporary docking framework attached, to which a couple of shuttles and a few fighters were attached. A KSF scout ship was docked to the core merchant ship. An extensible habitation ‘bubble’ was also attached to the core ship, expanding the living area. Ximon thought the whole thing resembled something a precocious child might construct from mismatched parts.

  Mantis was directed to dock to another of the core’s airlocks and then report to ‘headquarters’ in the cargo bay. Ximon found it all somewhat amusing but went to the location indicated. The headquarters was essentially a deployable command center set up in the nearly empty cargo bay. A dozen or so scouts and several civilians labored away at terminals throughout.

  A senior non-commissioned officer about Ximon’s age greeted him. “Welcome Commander. I’m Superintendent Wells. The Mission Commander will see you in the conference room in about 15 minutes. Can I get you anything?”

  “No, I’m good, thanks. Just point me to the conference room and I’ll rest my eyes while I wait.”

  “Good thinking, sir.” He pointed to a door across the bay. “There’s the conference room. When you’re done, please find me and we’ll arrange for that cargo.”

  Ximon nodded and headed for the conference room. He got a bottle of water from a box on the floor and waited patiently, nearly asleep. When the door opened, he snapped to and rose.

  A tall, grizzled old scout with captain’s rank on a somewhat rumpled uniform smiled and shook Ximon’s hand. “Greetings Commander. We’ve been expecting you. I’m Captain Cochran, the commander of this humble mission.”

  “Nice to meet you, sir. Glad we could help by bringing the supplies. We enjoyed working with the Irapce in that exercise last year. How is the Mission working out?”

  “They seem glad to have us, but don’t want us too close, too often. I think some political opposition has arisen since you were here. They fear annexation, but you know this is much farther out than the Republic is likely to go anytime soon. Anyway, we’ve done a few small exercises with them, occasionally send a trainer down on one specialty or another and host a couple Irapce ‘observers’ here on the station. We’ve been here about eight weeks and the current plan is to stay several more months. We’ll see how that goes. The Republic would like to establish a permanent base on one of the moons to facilitate trade and technology exchange, but so far the Irapce are resisting that idea. So, our job is to charm them.” He grinned sarcastically. “You can see why they picked me for that, eh?”

  “Well, I hope it works out. It’s a very nice planet and the people are both nice and capable.”

  “We’ll see. I know you’ve got some cargo for us, but then I’d like to host you and your crew at dinner at 1700. It’s nothing fancy, but you’ll meet a few of my staff and we might pick your brain a bit. We’re set up for you to stay the night and then I’ve got a couple briefings set up with you in the morning. Any problem with all that?

  “No, sir. We expected to stay about a day if you wanted us to.”

  “Great. We can get you quarters or you can stay on Mantis, as you prefer. Our quarters may be a bit bigger, but probably aren’t much fancier. Let the Superintendent know what you decide at dinner.” He rose. “Well, I’ve got to go compose one of my anxiously awaited missives on this Mission to the folks back home else they’ll forget we’re here. See you at 1700.”

  Ximon found the Superintendent and arranged to have the cargo picked up. Then he went back to Mantis and briefed the crew on the plan for dinner and such. He and Raiza decided to stay on the station, as did Shao, who liked to socialize. Elsbeth and Peter decided to sleep on Mantis, as did Silas.

  The dinner was a low-key affair. It was served ‘wardroom style’ but without the typical pomp. Cochran seemed very down-to-earth. His staff seemed competent and friendly. Commander Harris, Operations, was a small, slim woman in her mid-thirties with extremely short hair. Lieutenant Brees, Facilities, was a slightly pudgy guy in his late twenties with a spotty beard presumably designed to make him appear older. Then there was Superintendent Wells – fifty something, down-to-earth, and efficient. They were all realistic about their mission but were optimistic about improved relations with the Irapce. They were very interested in Mantis’ various missions, as well as their time working with the Irapce. Mantis had clearly impressed the locals. They were also quite interested that Mantis’ crew included as many robots as people.

  During a lull in conversation, Ximon asked Harris if they had anything new on Orrarra or Verravroge. He said he didn’t think so but would check.

  Cochran was also quite interested to find that Mantis would be spending some time on planet as guests of the Irapce and would be speaking at their Academy. Cochran also had someone giving lectures at the Academy, but they didn’t seem as welcome as the Mantis’ crew apparently was.

  The night was quiet. Ximon enjoyed the slightly larger quarters and having the shower in the room, instead of down the hall.

  The meetings the next day were fairly straightforward, though a representative from the Foreign Office counseled them to be careful in dealing with the Irapce and to remember they weren’t currently acting as formal representatives. After those warnings, he went on to ask them to send him summaries of their time on Irapce. Other than that, the group just discussed the exercise Mantis had been in, as well as the ones the Mission had conducted since then.

  Mantis left that afternoon, the crew anxiously heading for the main planet and a more comfortable environment.

  When they contacted the Knemu Guard Base, they were directed to a landing pad K5, asked how many were in their party, and told a van would be waiting for them. As when they had been here before, the city of Nebde was beautiful. It was built on a lush jungle peninsula and was surrounded by white and black sand beaches and blue water. Few of the buildings were very large and most were scaled and painted to blend well with each other and nearby jungle. The city was laid out logically and conveniently and it seemed to have almost anything one would need without being too big or crowded. Even the spaceport was built to minimize impact on the jungle and beaches, with landing pads dispersed over a wide area instead of the whole thing being a giant slab of concrete.

  The Knemu base itself looked very nice, with small, quaint buildings and landing pads separated by small strands of jungle. Many of the base buildings were on the water and the club, housing, and villas were all near multiple small, semi-private beaches with warm water and no visible crowds. Ximon had never been stationed at any base that looked more inviting.

  The driver, a Sergeant Ramsu, stood by to take them to their villa. He had the dark tan skin, black hair, and hooked nose that Ximon associated with many of the Irapce. He was solidly built, sported a thin, black beard, and appeared efficient if not particularly jovial. He drove a van large enough for the entire crew.

  The crew all piled in – Ximon, Raiza, Elsbeth, Peter, Shao, Silas, Euclidia, Mantis’ telebot, and Io. The Sergeant obviously found this party quite odd, but stoically said nothing to offend the honored guests. He helped them unload at the villa. It, too, was just as nice as before – large, well-appointed, and near a beach. Only Mantis and Euclidia didn’t get a room, but they didn’t mind.

  Before he left, Sergeant Ramsu pointed Ximon to a card addressed to him on the counter. Ximon opened it and found it was from Major Kanebti, inviting them to a brunch the next morn
ing.

  They all slept well once they found their beds, though Shao, Silas, Elsbeth, and Peter were on the beach until quite late.

  A different driver arrived to take them to brunch – a tall, skinny man with a large mustache. This time Mantis, Euclidia, and Io stayed behind, watching and talking since they needed no food and couldn’t fake eating well enough to put people at ease.

  At brunch Ximon was very pleased to see Major Kanebti and a couple of other officers they had worked with during the exercise. Kanebti greeted them with a large smile on his hawk-like features and was kind enough to introduce them to the others, though they’d met before. Ximon was thankful for that because he couldn’t recall several of the names and didn’t want to have to repeatedly ask Raiza for them. The brunch was delicious, replete with varieties of fresh fruit, light pastries, and many varieties of honey and agave nectar. Ximon wasn’t able to eat without getting a little sticky, but he quite enjoyed it.

  Kanebti and the others asked them all about their travels since the exercise. The crew was happy to oblige by telling different parts of the story, Elsbeth in particular sometimes ‘talking over’ the others. Their hosts expressed surprise at their diplomatic efforts on Onzarhat and their discovery of unknown aliens on 729-ADX.

  Kanebti said excitedly, “Oh, what an exciting life you lead!”

  Ximon shrugged. “Sometimes it’s much more exciting than we’d like, if you catch my drift. Thank you again for letting us visit. We all remember Irapce fondly and appreciate the hospitality.”

  “You are a friend of Irapce, and we do hope to get some wisdom out of you all while you’re here.”

  “But you’ve got KSF personnel at the temporary base you can call on.”

  “Yes, and we do. However, I don’t think they understand us as well as you and, since you’re not representing the KSF this time, we value you as an independent viewpoint.”

  “I’m not sure I can guarantee that, but we’ll speak our minds.”