The Tower and the Hive (39 page)

“So am I!”

 

“If I recall correctly,” Captain Vestapia Soligen of the
Columbia
said, “Ciudad Rodrigo had a sphere which they sent up our tail end.” Her expression was unforgiving.

“No good did it do them,” Lieutenant Rhodri Eagles remarked dryly, twiddling his thumbs where he had stretched out a long body in one of the comformable chairs in the Talents' lounge aboard the Constellation-class ship.

The captain gave him a long stare, and as if it had been his idea and not his captain's look, he straightened up and clasped his hands together.

“Do we know if it took its scout ships with it?” she asked those in the room.

“No sir, we don't,” said Commander Wayla Gregorian, the science officer.

“Mostly they do,” Rojer said, “or they have no way of getting to and from the sphere when they reach their destination.”

“Unless of course,” Roddie remarked, “they've got ground-to-ship transports we've never seen.”

“A distinct possibility.” Major Kwan Keiser-Tau frowned at the security risk that could pose.

“However, I've never seen any,” Rojer said, from a position of more experience with Hivers than anyone else in the lounge, and looked at Captain Hptml of the
KMTM.
HAVE YOU, SIR?

The large bronze-colored 'Dini shook its head. HAVE BEEN IN COMBAT WITH SCOUTS. NEVER BEEN TO AN OCCUPIED PLANET WITH
LIVE
QUEENS. THE POSSIBILITY EXISTS.

“Since your experts”—Major Keiser-Tau inclined his head stiffly but respectfully in Hptml's direction—“seem to think that the planet Prime Thian explored is atypical and since you, Rojer, were at Xh-33 when its spaceworthy craft were demolished, we shall proceed with caution.”

As ever,
Roddie said in a 'pathed aside to the Talents in the room.

His hide gets skinned if we get hurt, Rhodri,
Flavia reminded him.

“Prime Raven is anxious for us to reconnoiter,” Captain Soligen said.

The world they were fast approaching had three big, sprawling continents as well as small islands that might once have been connected to the main continents. Ice caps glittered at both north and south poles. There was little seismic activity anywhere, so the planet was old, geologically speaking. The initial probes indicated it was well settled and most of the arable lands had been laid out in typical Hiver field patterns. One of the continents narrowed on the equator so that, from space, it looked like a tightly corseted caricature of a Human figure. Soligen pointed to an area above the “waist,” a wide plain with a range of hills that separated it from the ocean.

“I propose we start with this one. There appears to be a large enough underground area to house scouts.”

“If they have any left,” Roddie said, but he was paying close attention to the briefing.

“Certainly they have no sphere, just the debris that suggests one was in geosynchronous orbit to that field. Helm”—Vestapia raised her wrist com to her mouth—“how soon before we reach orbit?”

“Four hours twenty minutes, Captain.”

She rose. “Very well then, Major”—she turned to the security officer—“assemble a small team to accompany our Primes. I shall be most interested in having a running commentary on your exploration.” She turned at the door leading to her bridge. “The treated hazmat gear is to be worn.”

And don't forget to brush your teeth and gargle away the
garlic, said the irreverent Roddie, though his expression was bland.

I just hope I'm around when you forget and speak those mean thoughts out loud,
Flavia said, rising.

“Thank all the gods that I don't have to go with you. The temperature down there is like Clarf's,” she added, jerking her thumb at their target on the planet.

“I don't know about anyone else,” Roddie said, “but my hazmat is able for any temperature.”

“Even the frost when you get cheeky with Vestapia?” Asia asked.

Roddie slowly brought his head around to look down at his youngest sister.

“Look who's talking about cheek!” he exclaimed, throwing up his hands as if in defense. He shot a quick glance at Rojer, who merely smiled at Asia. “I should never have encouraged him to court you.” He laid a hand flat on his chest and appeared wounded to the core. “Serpent to my breast.”

Asia only laughed, and putting a hand on Rojer's arm, hauled him in the direction of their cabin off the Talents' lounge.

“Remember,” Roddie called after them, “we have to report in four hours and... ten minutes.”

 

As the surface party's shuttle touched lightly down on the designated spot, Rojer could sense Asia's excitement as she darted glances out the porthole. Kwan Keiser-Tau gestured authoritatively at his sergeant to lead out the scouting party for a quick look around.

“Nothing's stirring, sir,” the sergeant said.

“Not even the dust,” came a low murmur.

“Can it!” the sergeant ordered. “Found what seems to be a manmade ... excuse me, unnatural formation. Spread out there, Monks, see how far it goes. Might be the opening to the underground.”

“Check for anything resembling a... manufactured remote or spotting device.”

Rojer peered past the wiry, shorter security major and then jumped to the ground ... holding up his hand to silence Kwan's protest.

“Ain't no one here but us chickens, Major,” Lieutenant Rhodri Eagles observed as he dropped beside the Prime.

Rojer hunkered down to push a finger into the obviously manufactured seam, looking along its length until he saw the scout reach the end and hold up his arm. The man pointed south, indicating the perpendicular direction of the seam.

“This is it, then. There's enough space to send an optic down.” Rojer indicated the opening.

The major snorted, but beckoned to one of his technicians, who promptly came forward swinging the equipment pack from his back to a ready position. Kneeling by the crack, he inserted the optical wire, pushing it down, then kept his eyes on the dials and the small screen.

“Nothing down there but dust, and some sort of equipment stacked against the far wall. Over there, underneath us,” he said, pointing to well beyond the parked shuttle.

Tell Captain Soligen, Flavia, that the stable's empty and the barn door's still locked,
Rojer said.

Do I repeat exactly what you tell me, Rojer?
There was a ripple of laughter in Flavia's tone.

Whatever. She likes a good laugh now and then. We'll move out now, Kwan ever vigilant, to the nearest facility, about two kilometers from here, I'd say,
Rojer added, adjusting the glare by darkening his helmet's visor. “Can we move out now, Major?” he asked politely.

“To the target area, Captain?”

“That's the idea, Major,” Rojer said, controlling his impatience with the methodical officer, and beckoned for Asia, Mialla Evshenk, Yakamasura and Wayla Gregorian to exit the shuttle.

Nice touch that, though,
Asia said, grinning up at her spouse,
reminding you that you may be a captain in the Talents' lounge but he outranks you on the ground.

Roddie was carefully walking the very straight line of the hatch, did an abrupt right-hand turn with military precision, a hundred meters to another right turn, to the other end and around back to them ... leaving a straight line of boot prints to mark out the underground garage.

The rest of the surface team exited the shuttle, and at Keiser-Tau's gesture, some trotted out to the perimeter, heads turning from side to side in careful survey. Others bracketed the specialists. When his scouts reported in that all was clear, the major signaled them to return. Once his team had reassembled, Keiser-Tau raised his arm and led them at a jog trot up the slight incline from what had been the queens' landing field.

The terrain altered abruptly into lush green vegetation, obviously cultivated, neat tamped-down earth marking well-used paths.

“They sure do keep a tidy garden,” murmured one of the troopers.

“Maintain silence,” the major said, a scowl in his voice and probably on his face. He stopped at the edge of the cultivation, looking this way and that.

“The queens do not, I repeat, do not see or hear us, Major,” Rojer said.

“If they could hear, the patter of booted feet on an empty chamber would have roused some reaction,” Roddie added.

“As you say, Lieutenant.” Kwan awarded the T-3 a bare turn of his head in acknowledgment.

“Nor should we trample down the fields of corn,” Mialla said, pointing to the neat, well-used paths. “We can easily stick to them. There's certainly nothing else moving. Major,” she added deferentially.

“Keep to the paths. Sergeant, take the point.”

Mialla used his momentary distraction to snatch a leaf from the nearest plant and was stowing it away in a specimen container before Keiser-Tau could protest.

“Need to analyze everything cogent to the project, Major.” Her remark was not an apology. When that crop ended and a new, feathery plant was visible, she also took samples of that variety.

Following the paths, they came to a T-junction.

“And leading directly to our target too,” Yakamasura said.

The security officer grunted, but despite his scans of the surrounding fields, nothing moved save the top leaves in a light wind.

So quiet you can hear the leaves growing,
Asia said to Rojer.

A grunt from the major had the sergeant and two others jogging up the track to a distant pyramidal structure, the slope to its open side plainly visible as a black maw.

“We can move out now.” Keiser-Tau's raised arm gave them a needless direction.

Both Mialla Evshenk and Yakamasura paused long enough to gather botanical and soil samples on their way, a patient rear guard stopping as they did so.

I didn't think a Hiver world would look so grand,
Asia confided to Rojer. There was just enough room on the path for her to jog beside him.

That's because you've only seen the ruined ones before. Xh-33 is
...
was like this,
he said, shaking his head. The
Columbia
had received copies of the Xh-33 massacre. Rojer had been particularly horrified by the slaughter, since he remembered his probes across the orderly landscape now ruined by war.

Major Keiser-Tau halted them twenty meters from the slope into the facility. He sent the sergeant to the vantage point of the top of the pyramid and the man adjusted his visor for distance, turning slowly as he searched for movement. He paused, stiffened and pointed. The major adjusted his helmet, but he had to join the taller sergeant on the structure to see what had alerted him.

“A group of inbound workers from the look of them,” he said. “Up here, everyone. We'll let them precede us. Some appear to be carrying leaves and things.”

Without haste, the specialists joined the major and his troopers, where they too could see the advance of swaying backs.

“All in step too, looks like,” someone murmured.

“Worse'n boot camp,” another anonymous voice added.

“Silence.”

Roddie twiddled with a setting on his helmet. “MAYDAY! MAYDAY!”

“Cut out the nonsense,” Rojer said, because the major had gone into a crouch and his troopers had drawn their weapons.

“I told you they wouldn't hear us.”

The major walked up to the T-3, his face contorted with rage. He was a full head shorter than Rhodri Eagles. “You're on report, Lieutenant.”

“Yes sir,” the lieutenant replied briskly, saluting.

Roddie!
Asia said in exasperation.
One day one of these funny little things you think up is going to backfire on you.

So everyone tells me,
Rhodri said with a carefully 'pathed sigh.

The surface party watched the stalwart workers trundling along, their backs loaded with freshly plucked wide, red-veined leaves.

“Like chard,” murmured Mialla Evshenk softly.

The burdens covered most of the creatures so that details of their appearance were obscured. They counted one hundred pairs of workers descending toward the facility. Still in impeccable files, they walked around to the entrance slope and disappeared into the maw. A mechanical rumble startled everyone.

“Sending the harvest to the processors,” Rojer said. “Remember the data from Thian's downside visit?”

“Oh yes, of course,” Yakamasura said, smiling with relief.

Keiser-Tau gestured to another technician, who activated a handheld device, turning it as it followed movement below.

“Life-forms are now in a short tunnel and proceeding into a low wide...” one of the technicians reported, his handheld sensor following the movement.

Hole in the wall,
said Roddie Eagles, irrepressibly.

“... stable or some sort of holding place.” A long pause. “No more movement there, sir.”

“Where is
there movement, Corporal?” the major demanded.

The corporal walked, as if on eggs, across the top of the structure and then stopped at the edge of the roof. “Farther below, out in that direction, sir.”

“Laid out just as Thian's planet was,” Rojer said. “And Xh-33, though I never got into the queens' quarters.” He gestured for the major to lead on.

We need GC readings everywhere... and samples of any dirt,
Flavia said.
And keep talking. To me, if not to the major.

So Rojer described everything as the ever vigilant major led them cautiously down the slope. Yakamasura and Mialla took dirt samples, having to dig with their bootheels to loosen enough tamped earth to fill their containers.