Nabukko, page 6
“Does it look like a spick-and-span Engineering station? Ready for an inspection?”
“No.”
“Well, there you have it.”
My eyes were still picking apart the discombobulated area when one of the colonists glanced up at us.
It was Leaf Man.
He’d lost yesterday’s crunchy décor. Not one to disappoint, however, he had swapped the leaf-hair out for a black gooey smear across one cheek.
He wasn’t scowling at me this time, but he also wasn’t smiling. He didn’t wave or nod or do anything one might normally do when acknowledging someone’s presence.
He just stared at me, unflinching. Seconds ticked by without either of us breaking eye contact.
Gia elbowed me in the side. “Come on, tour’s not over,” she chimed.
I lifted my chin and broke the unnerving connection. What was with that guy?
Gia herded me past Engineering and around another metal rectangle she simply labeled as "more supplies".
We had dipped into the southeastern side of the camp, having so far traversed a hook-shaped path from the dorms.
To our left stood a two-story wooden building with a metal roof. It was narrow, and the second floor was all open sides. Two people dressed in tan uniforms stood erect on the second level, one peering out through the forest, the other intently gazing south past the med tents. I recognized one of them, unfortunately. Two more tan-garbed people mingled outside the building.
“That’s the guard station, if you haven’t already figured that out,” Gia supplied.
“Are you concerned about someone attacking, or just wild animals?” I ventured.
Gia pinched her lips. “It’s just a precaution.”
As we trotted past the guard station, Gia motioned toward the two-story circular building.
“That’s the Government building.”
“Government?” I asked, intrigued. “What kind of system do you use?”
These were irregular colonists, so I half expected their government strategy to be equally strange. Maybe they were an offshoot militaristic group and had established Merula as their autocrat. She did seem to be the one calling the shots around here.
“'Government' is a loose term.”
I knew it!
“Merula is our—” She paused to clear her throat. “Merula is in charge,” Gia corrected. “Each division has a group leader, much like any ship in the Fleet,” she said, tossing me a look. “The Government building is used for any administrative tasks or record keeping. It’s also where Merula and the division leaders meet. Any internal problems usually go through there.”
That sounded much less extreme than I was originally picturing.
We were close to the front entrance of the camp again. We continued circling and soon veered past the med tents and around the back of the Government building.
Between the Government building and the dorms stood two long rows of wood and metal stalls with permeated flooring. Several small gray pipes connected with large black barrels stacked along the roof of the stalls. A few of the pipes ran across the ground and disappeared under the floor. A shabby square building sat next to the stalls with its own set of inflow and outflow pipes.
“These are the communal showers. The laundry wash station is in that shed.”
“Communal?” I echoed, gulping. I was used to me and my space. I wasn’t sure how "communal" I was comfortable with.
Gia eyed me then smirked. “Got a problem with that?”
“No,” I said too quickly.
“What, not used to stripping in front of a whole yard full of people?”
“I, um . . .”
“Hey there, Ms. Hot Shot, you harassin’ our newbie?” sang out a voice behind me.
Gia’s smirk vanished. She jutted her jaw out and narrowed her eyes.
I turned toward the voice. My savior stood tall with a short purple bob and a patented smirk. She wore brown trousers with a long tan shirt tucked in, a brown jacket, and brown boots. Her hands rested on her hips as she grinned at Gia maniacally.
“Lethia,” Gia spit out.
“Always a joy to bask in your presence, G!” Lethia chimed. The woman sauntered over to me, slinging a well-oiled arm through my dusty one.
“And you must be Eff! So thrilled to have someone more"—she glanced over me—“organic around than Pinstripe Penny over here.”
“Just because I actually care about rules and order and—”
“You’d watch a puppy die to preserve order.”
Gia huffed. “You would breed a pack of mongooses just because you’re bored!” she shot back.
Lethia’s grin widened. “And I’d make sure there were enough for everyone to take home as a pet! I’d be the hero of the day! Really, G. You should try to actually insult me sometime.” She dipped a shoulder. “It would be fun,” she crooned.
“You couldn’t be serious if your life depended on it!”
“Why gosh, if my life depended on it, then I definitely wouldn’t be serious!” Lethia intoned.
“I can’t deal with you.”
“Guess that doesn’t make you a very good leader.”
Gia’s face grew red. Lethia had clearly gotten under her skin. I had thought of Gia as made of stone and ice, but apparently she was a volcano. You just had to know where the magma chamber was.
“Leth, that’s enough,” sported a calm voice.
Lethia turned to greet the newcomer. He was almost as tall as she was, but his demeanor was a complete opposite of hers. Where Lethia was abrasive and outlandish, he was smooth and easy. He dressed smartly, a feat beyond impressive given the circumstances. His hair waved around his head in dark cornrows, his full beard neatly trimmed close to his dark skin.
“You never let me go for the kill,” Lethia pouted.
“With good reason,” the stranger replied. He turned to me and stuck out a hand.
“Hello. I’m Martel.”
I shook his hand. “Eff,” I quipped.
He raised a brow. “That’s an unusual name.”
I shrugged, glancing at the other two people who had accompanied Martel.
They looked younger—thirteen, maybe fourteen—and closely resembled each other despite being different sexes. They both had brown porcelain skin, a delicate chin and nose, long lashes, and a head full of wispy brown curls.
“This is Yula and Lycidas,” Martel said.
“They’re twins!” Lethia tolled. “Aren’t they just adorable!” Lethia reached out to pinch Lycidas’ cheek, but he ducked just out of reach, hiding behind Martel.
“Hi,” the twins called out in unison, their voices dainty and soft.
“Um, hello,” I said back, a slight smile reaching the corner of my lips.
“Where are you two heading?” Martel asked, nodding toward Gia.
Gia opened her mouth to respond for me, but Lethia jumped in first.
“G here was just pickin’ on Eff. Construing some nonsense about how we all shower together like some nudist colony.”
“Lethia!” Martel scolded as the twins’ faces turned pink.
“What? They’re basically adults now.”
“Lethia is, as usual, overstating things,” Gia reasserted.
“You did kind of imply . . .” I started until Gia turned her glare on me.
“Oh yeah, what did I imply? Hmm?” Gia asked, her tone edged with venom.
I swallowed and snapped my mouth shut.
“See? G’s just a prickly bully,” Lethia whined. She tugged me away a few steps. “Don’t worry, G just likes to make everyone uncomfortable. It gives her a sense of power.”
“That’s not—”
Lethia held up a hand, interrupting Gia. “Don’t you worry, newbie. We have plenty of privacy here. Our crew’s mixed and matched with all sorts of people, so we have to be respectful and the like. Which means no nudists,” she said with a smirk toward Gia.
Gia rolled her eyes. “Okay, we’re done here. I need to take her to see Chandice.”
“The Doc?” Martel asked, glancing at me. “Everything okay?”
“You didn’t see her yesterday, did you?” Lethia butted in. “Little Eff here looked a right nightmare! Like she had been hog-tied one too many times.”
I raised a brow. “Hog-tied?”
Lethia opened her mouth to give a full lecture on the phrase, but Gia cut her off. “Not now.” She turned to me. “Come on, let’s go,” she commanded.
She stalked away toward the med tents, leaving me to shrug at the others and quickly trot after her.
Gia said nothing as we marched, glowering at the packed dirt and brown shrubs. I didn’t dare start another conversation with her.
We reached the infirmary after a few minutes of tense silence. Gia planted herself by the canvas flap that served as the front door.
“Well? Go on, get it over with,” she said, gesturing for me to hurry it along.
I flattened my lips but somehow held my tongue as I slipped inside.
The doctor was as easygoing and friendly as yesterday. She looked over my arm, applied a touch more salve, redid the bandage, gave me another shot of Nano Cure, and sent me on my way. I was back outside within fifteen minutes.
I was disappointed to see Gia still standing by the tent, waiting for me.
However, my day was made infinitely better by the sight of Eoghan talking to the short-haired woman.
“How did you know we would be here?” Gia was asking Eoghan.
Eoghan shrugged and glanced away. “Lethia might have mentioned it.”
Gia gritted her teeth and looked ready to pounce. But then she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“You and her really don’t get along, do you?” Eoghan asked softly.
Gia pursed her lips. “No.”
Eoghan rubbed his chin. “Have you tried—”
“We don’t need to like each other to get things done. As long as she follows orders, the only problem I have is myself. And I can handle that,” Gia stated.
Eoghan looked surprised. He was about to respond to Gia when he glanced over and saw me by the tent entrance.
“Oh, Eff! Hey!” He smiled at me, the pleasure reaching his eyes.
I found it strange to have someone so excited to see me. But I smiled back at him because I found I liked having someone excited to see me.
“Hi, Eoghan. What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Well, I was hoping to take you to lunch,” he said, eyes darting back to Gia for permission. Gia folded her arms and opened her mouth to protest, but then her eyes caught something to the left. I shifted my head to look. It wasn’t a something but rather a someone.
Leaf Man, to be precise.
He wasn’t looking our way, so Gia shuffled around us and lightly jogged over to him.
“Keir! Do you have a second?” Gia called out to him.
So, Leaf Man’s name was Keir. Not that I would need that information in the future, of course.
“Guess that means lunch is a go,” Eoghan said with a glint in his eye.
I pried my eyes away from the retreating forms of Gia and Leaf Man.
“Hmm? Oh yes.” I looked at Eoghan’s warm and welcoming face. “Gia mentioned that meals are served three times a day? It doesn’t quite look like it’s midday yet,” I said glancing up at this planet’s sun.
Eoghan chuckled. “Gia likes to live a regimented life, and she would love for everyone else to follow her example. But we’re not all there yet. Meals are served three times a day, but they always leave leftovers for latecomers, and there are usually some snacks available at all times, too.” He threw me a smirk. “So don’t worry if you miss a meal.”
“Why is she like that?” I probably shouldn’t pry, but I was curious.
“Gia’s . . . Gia wants to take on a lot. And she can. But she takes it all pretty seriously.” Eoghan paused, gazing up at the black mountains surrounding us. “I know she wants to be as good as Merula. Better even. It’s a lot of pressure.”
“How do you know this? Don’t take it the wrong way, but you two don’t seem like good friends,” I said.
Eoghan looked at me, a slight chuckle escaping his lips. “We aren’t. But . . . I don’t know. I can just see it on her face when she’s working, or how she sounds when she’s talking about something.” He shrugged. “We’ve known each other for at least five years now. Never close, like you said. But we’ve studied and worked together.”
Before I could reply, Eoghan glanced around the camp and said, “Well, shall we go?”
Chapter 5
As we made our way to the mess hall, we passed by the showers, reminding me of my disgruntled state.
“Is there a place I can trade for clothing?” I asked Eoghan hesitantly. I only had what I was wearing, which would make laundry day rather awkward.
Eoghan glanced at me. “Oh, um, there is the supplies post—it’s this building near the showers and washing station.” I recognized the building he was pointing to from my brief tour with Gia. “We can go there right now, if you’d like?” Eoghan asked. “Or, if you want to take a shower . . .” He paused, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.
“Is that a suggestion?” I teased.
His cheeks reddened, but he laughed. “No! No,” he said between chuckles. “I was just being polite, I swear!”
“The supplies post would be great then,” I said warmly.
We circled around to the other side of the metal building, and I realized that in the center of the wall was a large open window with a wide bottom shelf. A tall, broad woman with a severe bun stood inside the building on the other side of the window. She was sorting through equipment and fabrics that rested on the shelf.
I shifted my pack to my other shoulder. “So, how does your trading system work?” I asked Eoghan. I realized, with a sinking feeling, that I didn’t have much to offer in a trade.
“Well, it’s not really a trading system, for starters. I know you can’t tell by our generous hospitality and jovial nature, but we don’t actually get any visitors here,” he said with a grin. “We operate similar to how we—how a crew would function on a ship. Although there are a few hundred of us, Ascelin here keeps meticulous records of who needs supplies and when they were distributed. No one can pull the wool over her,” Eoghan said, gesturing toward the ample woman in the window. She spared us a meager glance but otherwise continued her work. A long scar ran from her ear to her nose.
We inched closer to the window. Eoghan pointed to the man hunched over a table behind Ascelin. I hadn’t seen him earlier.
“Kennal is a mastermind with a needle and thread,” Eoghan continued. Kennal gave us a toothy grin and an eager wave. “Together they manage distribution of our personal supplies, as well as clothes and fabric mending.”
I waved weakly back at Kennal.
Eoghan sauntered up to the window shelf and leaned an elbow on it.
“Great morning, isn’t it, Ascelin! Well, while we’re here, could we trouble you for a set of clothing for Eff here?” Eoghan said brightly.
Ascelin’s eyes narrowed as she looked me over. “She is not on the list.” Her voice was deep and accented, every syllable enunciated.
Eoghan laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. “Eff will be staying with us for a while . . . can we put her on the list?”
Ascelin ignored him and continued sorting through the supplies.
Eoghan looked back at me, embarrassment and uncertainty written on his face.
“It’s okay, Eoghan,” I said. “Merula said something about getting into rotation for duty assignment in the camp. I can come back once I’ve gotten a few assignments under my belt.”
I hoped that earning the right to be on the "list" wouldn’t take too long. I would have to shower in my clothes until then, it seemed. But I figured it was better to leave gracefully than to nag the person in charge of the supplies I would soon need.
Eoghan gave me an apologetic nod as he moved away from the window.
Ascelin eyed me for a moment before she grunted and walked out of sight. I looked at Eoghan and shrugged.
I was just about to walk away from the supplies building when Ascelin reappeared at the window, this time holding a small canvas drawstring bag. She held it out to me wordlessly.
I reached for it in surprise. “Thanks.”
Ascelin grunted again and resumed her sorting.
Eoghan raised his eyebrows as we walked away from the building.
“That was . . . unexpected,” he said.
I opened the bag as we continued our trek in the direction of the mess hall, curious what Ascelin had given me. Inside the small bag were two pairs of thick trousers, two canvas shirts, several undergarments, and a hide jacket that looked very warm. I longed to take it out right now, but I didn’t. I would wait until after I had showered to wear it.
“Do you think your colony here will always operate on a communal system?” I asked, looking up at Eoghan.
He shrugged, looking away. “I suppose so.”
“No trade or currency, even generations from now?”
“Money would just create problems that don’t exist, yeah? Why introduce it back into our system?”
“I suppose it could work, since you’re just a small colony and all,” I mused.
“It’s not such a novel concept. Several of the moon colonies have been using the same system for about a century, you know.”
I paused. “Sure, Luna and Europa might have something like that, but I didn’t think it was so developed. Or official.”
“Ganymede and Titan do, too.”
I whipped my head around. “Ganymede and Titan?!”
“Eff,” Eoghan said skeptically. “Which rock have you been hiding under? That’s like, I don’t know—first year Uni stuff!”
I felt my cheeks reddening. I knew I had extensive training and had some specialized education—perhaps even attended Uni and the Academy—I just couldn’t remember most of it. My memories were fuzzy blurbs at best. I didn’t have anything of substance to defend myself with.
