Semirame and Thian rapidly covered the distance, their quick steps echoing in the underground space since stealth did not seem to be required.
The smell was heavier as they reached the dumping point. Peering down the slide that was at a forty-five degree angle, they could see a parallel chute and conveyor belt. Despite the smell, their handlights showed no refuse at all, the plascrete clean.
“Down and down they go,” Semirame remarked at her driest. “Hemmer, Vale, Singh, take a look below.” To Thian she added,
Mark 'em as they pass you, Thian, so's you know 'em to bring 'em back up, like you did the crews in the Phobos Sphere.
He could see her wide grin, her teeth showing brightly in his visor. He nodded, getting a touch of each of them as the troopers imperturbably slid down the ramp and started examining the direction of the belt.
“Found a whole bay or holding level full of... workers? Sir? Sir?” another trooper reported. “Smells bad but no garbage.”
“Got enough light to send me back a scan, Wixell?”
“Do my best. Place's as dark as...” Wixell paused, cleared her throat and went on. “Dark, sir.”
Thian watched his wrist unit and the scan came up, lumps of darkness then illuminated by a slowly moving beam of light.
“The workers,” Thian said when he saw the tool extension crossed lifelessly on the front of the creature. “Standing by for orders from the queen?”
“Can't move any farther in, sir,” Wixell went on. “Place is stuffed with them, and the ceiling's just high enough for them to lie down, or whatever it is they're doing. More vegetable stink too.”
“Any other exit from the...” Semirame paused, grimacing as she tried to find an appropriate word.
“Stable?” Thian suggested.
“Stables are for living things. That's a garage,” she said, sounding disgusted.
“No sir, blank walls.”
“C'mon back then, Wixell.”
“Sir?” Another scout reported in. “Found a bigger tunnel, leads down and straight ahead for several hundred meters.” Her voice had an edge of excitement. “Big enough for a queen, I think, sir. I'm getting static from the GC, so I'll take readings.”
“Do that, Mocmurra.” Thian could see the commander grinning.
“Go on, Thian. I'll call them.” She jerked her thumb toward the slide and then her finger in the direction Thian should go. “Captain Lyon's on his way, Mocmurra. Wait for him, will ya? Bessy, Trainor, scout ahead for the captain.”
Thian trotted across to the light held by the figure at the opening to the tunnel's slit. It wasn't very wide, but then the queens weren't either; they were tall.
“This way, sir,” Mocmurra said; the sturdy marine was grinning over her discovery. “Only one the size for Humans.”
“Anyone know where Grm is?” Thian asked, realizing he hadn't caught sight of the 'Dini since it had entered.
“It was with me, sir. It's up ahead.”
“Let's move it, then,” Thian said. It wouldn't do for a 'Dini specialist to get hurt or captured by the Hivers. He picked up his feet and ran down the straight tunnel, blessing the visibility of the visor.
It's okay, Thian,
came Clancy's reassuring thought.
Can you track Grm?
It's got a locator on its tool belt.
Thian kept running, trying to keep the nail-studded bootheels from hitting the tunnel floor too loudly, just in case the queen could feel vibrations. He had nearly run Grm down when the 'Dini appeared in front of him, at the T-junction. Actually, it was more than a T, for additional tunnels, all queen height, opened up like a delta. Nine more.
THIS WAY, Grm said, pointing to the first one on the left-hand side, its poll eye gleaming with excitement and the fur at an almost perpendicular angle to its body. When Thian would have moved forward, it held up one flipper, bringing it around to its mouth to indicate a necessity for stealth. Then Semirame yanked at Thian's sleeve and slipped in front of him. Well, she was right, of course, to guard him. They cautiously moved forward, placing their feet noiselessly.
An old snatch of a songâ
with catlike tread, upon our way we steal
âsprang to his mind.
No sound at all, we never speak a word,
Alison Ann's voice continued.
Tracking me again?
Thian said, amused that Gravy was in touch.
A fly's footfall would be distinctly heard,
was Semirame's addition, surprising a gasp out of Thian.
Just happened to remember it,
she added with a touch of bashful humor in her voice. Thian grinned. The commander's mental tone was quite different from her vocal one, and far more revealing of her personality than her spoken words.
Another smell impinged on their senses.
Queen stink?
Semirame asked Thian.
Heavy sting-pzzt, that's for sure.
Thian tried to ignore the concentration of that phenomenon, though the body armor did help.
Tell Mocmurra to get more readings.
He heard her give the order.
My sister Zara's the only one of us who's been close to a queen. Sam didn't mention smell as a factor in his confrontation with her. And nothing recorded about the ambience in her ... quarters... suggests a poisonous emanation. Of course, we had space suits when we were on the Great Sphere, but the vacuum of space would have erased any residual odors.
Wasn't much reek on the refugee sphere by the time it got to Phobos Base, but this smells a bit like it. Ooops!
Semirame had caught up to Grm and her halt was so abrupt that Thian walked into her. She pointed to her right and Thian saw the opening and what was beyond it, as plain in his visor as if they'd been in full lightâa queen, standing, with her groomers, her upper limbs extended for the attentions of her minions.
She isn't that big,
was Thian's first thought.
She isn't? Where are you?
Clancy demanded brusquely.
That's the Admiral's question, not mine.
We seem to be at the entrance to a queen's quarters. I don't think she's as big as the one at Heinlein Station.
Estimate!
A meter thirty centimeters, give or take a centimeter,
Thian said, looking at Semirame, who nodded though she kept her visor focused on the queen.
Grm tugged at Thian's arm and Thian leaned down to let Grm speak softly in his ear.
SHE IS NOT BIG. SHE IS OLD.
Thian passed on that information, though how Grm could tell the creature's age was beyond him.
I'll go in,
he told Semirame, at the same time he announced that intention to Clancy.
NO!!!
came at him from two directions and he shook his head against the blast.
Semirame looked at him, her eyes hidden by the visor, but there was no mistaking the negative posture of her body or her raised hand, ready to clout him if he moved.
All right then. You go first, Rame,
he said, trying to sound pleasant when he wanted to lift her up and shake her for being so damned cautious about his Talented self, when he could react faster in his own defense than anyone else could because he'd instantly sense injurious intent.
Semirame must have caught some of that, because she lowered her hand and shrugged. Carefully she entered the queen's quarters, Thian with equal stealth right behind her, so they were almost moving in tandem.
This is much bigger than I expected,
Thian said, and Semirame gave a barely perceptible nod of agreement.
Palatial, considering where she stashes the guys that do all the work.
Describe!
Clancy demanded.
Admiral talking,
he added a second later in an explanatory fashion.
Thian could just see the scene, with Ashiant stiff with apprehension.
The main room is say thirty meters by thirty meters and half that to the ceiling. It's crammed with bodies, her attendants, and there's a ledge against one wall, and against the wall perpendicular to it, another sort of seat
â
it may be where she extrudes her eggs ...
Yeah, it does look like a birthing stool with the big hole in the back
and
a sort of tube opening in the wall,
Semirame said, then added in a tone of disgust,
I don't know why I'm 'pathing. We could be roaring and this lot wouldn't hear us. We're right in front of them
â
they've got to know there are three individuals staring at them. And something just scurried over my feet... didn't even notice it was canted to one side doing so. Hey, wait a minute, Grm.
It doesn't hear you, Rame,
Thian said, quickly following the 'Dini as it moved farther into the room. Grm did have the good sense to move slowly, but the 'Dini was determined to see all it could of the habitat of its lifelong enemy. He caught up with Grm and planted one hand firmly on its shoulder, tightening his grip when the 'Dini tried to evade. He squeezed his fingers to make certain Grm knew it wasn't supposed to go on unattended.
Look at the walls, Thian,
Semirame said urgently, and Thian glanced upward, having been far more aware of the queen and her bustling attendants. He really hadn't noticed more than the size of the room. Now he saw that on three walls, just above the height of his head, there were glowing screens or monitors.
Their communications boards?
Why not? The queen's reading the one in front of her. Look at her head. She's tracking something, Semirame said. But I don't see as much change in the panels on the side walls.
Thian watched long enough to be aware of changes, rippling top to bottom of the panel, as if scrolling.
CAN YOU SEND SAMPLE?
Only if you and the Admiral stop roaring at me suddenly. I damned near jumped onto something,
Thian said testily.
Rame, tape a recording of the side panels. I can focus on the one she's watching from where I am now.
He lifted his wrist com, activating the record touch button, and grabbing Grm's arm before it took advantage of his need of both hands and got loose. Grm did pull its feet out of the way of several rapidly moving attendants who passed where it had been standing and went out through a hole in the wall.
Get Mocmurra in here too, to record the smells.
I think Sam would call them pheromones,
Clancy said.
Then something rammed into Thian's heel and he lifted his foot as another variety of attendant charged out, only momentarily thwarted by his being in its way.
Place is crawling with bugs and beetles,
Thian said, dipping his hand so the watchers could see the rammer skittering into the heap that surrounded the queen. With two of her nether limbs, she was tilted slightly backward, her egg-bulb just clearing the floor. Thian could see that it was being coatedâor cleaned, he wasn't sure whichâby those surrounding that section of her.
Admiral and Lieutenant Commander Britt, the science officer, say that she is not, I repeat not, as large as the Heinlein queen. Commander, please focus for one minute on the left-hand panel. Then for a minute on the right-hand one. We seem to get some sort of variation, but very erratic. Thian, go back to the wall she's watching. This may be a significant breakthrough.
Being sure he wasn't going to walk on anything scuttling about, Thian backed up so that his recorder would catch the full screen of the front wall the queen was watching. She opened her mouth. Thian and Rame both froze. A creature, slightly larger than most of her attendants, held up a lump. She lowered her head slightly, opening a maw, and the lump was inserted. She seemed to inhale the material because it certainly didn't go down her throat as a lump.
Did you see that? A male? Feeding her?
Before Semirame could answer, Thian was distracted when something connected hard against his shin. He danced off that foot, then replaced it to lift the other and avoid what was scurrying about.
Keep the camera still,
Clancy said.
I will if they'll stop kicking me in the shins. There! That better?
Frankly, I couldn't tell,
Clancy said,
but the experts sure are excited.
Why?
Semirame asked in her droll fashion.
We'd need a Hiver to decipher it ... maybe even read it, and none of 'em are talking to
us.
If it keeps the experts happy,
Clancy said, his mental tone amused,
let 'em try it.
Wonder what would happen if we could replicate this for the Heinlein queen?
Thian said mischievously. He heard Clancy's mental chortle and Semirame's snort.
Ah, that would be sheer mental cruelty, Thian,
Semirame
said, after 'porting her into a functional sphere so she could start it up for us and then whisking her back to prison.
Thian grinned in the green darkness around him at the memory of that incident. Well, the ploy had worked and the queen had shown them the sequence of start-up controls that the Human engineers had been unable to fathom. They'd 'ported the queen without the knowledge of the Phobos Base commander, but the tactic had worked.
That wouldn't work this time, Rame. She won't talk to us, and how what they might be saying to each other would help us, I don't know.
You're right,
Semirame said wistfully.
Admiral asks could you set up a surveillance unit in her quarters?
Clancy asked.
Sure. But I'll need a night-vision unit and some heavyduty stickum,
Semirame said. She added quickly, And it has
to be an odor-free adhesive!
Can do,
Clancy said.
Just hang in there a few minutes, if you can.