I returned all surveillance systems to normal and headed back toward Camelot. A quick command to a couple of drones ensured that I wouldn’t be taken by surprise by anything. This whole situation would require some thought, and I knew myself well enough to realize that I could walk right off a cliff when I got into this mode.
I walked along, looking down at my feet as I thought. Fred was truly evidence that jerks came in all shapes, sizes, and species. But what was setting him—and the rest of them—off like this? They weren’t behaving this way for the fun of it. The behavior was too consistent for pranks. They had the same hunting prospects as us, the same access to tubers—maybe even a little better than Camelot in that area.
I made a note to check out Caerleon using drones. Maybe I could pick out something significant.
I still had the unfinished chore of hunting lunch, though. And I’d wasted far too much time waltzing with Fred and his goons. With a shake of the head, I sent my drones out to look for some small game in the area. It was cheating, but I was running behind, and people gotta eat.
*
“Sounds like Fred took it personally.” Donald grinned at me.
“Well, no one likes being punched out. But I didn’t expect him to come hunting for me.”
Donald and I were sunning ourselves at Archimedes’ flintworking site, while he did his best to ignore the two of us. Buster worked with his father, roughing out some of the easier tools for Archimedes to finish later. Buster had little interest in flint working as a career path, although he had his father’s dexterity and was pretty decent with the basics. Buster liked to hunt, and his weapon of choice was a bow and arrow. He was easily the best shot in the village—possibly in both villages.
But Buster also loved hanging with his father, and if helping with the day’s work sped things along, then that’s what he’d do.
These three were very probably my favorite people on the planet.
“Too bad he didn’t give you the chance to slit his throat. You’d be doing everyone a favor.”
I shifted my position while I considered my reply. I doubted I could just coldly cut someone’s throat, but how to explain that twenty-first-century sensibility to stone-age beings?
“The thing is, Donald, we know it’s not just Fred. He may be taking to it with enthusiasm, but there’s more to this.”
“Mmm.” Donald lay back with his hands behind his head. The tone said that Donald would have no trouble skewering Fred next time they met. “Might be just about time that we go on a hunt of our own. Maybe ask a few questions.”
Well, that wasn’t a bad idea. Except for the ‘we’ part.
Remains
Bill
March 2223
Epsilon Eridani
I was making some modifications to Bullwinkle when I got a ping from Mario. I gave my roamers instructions that would keep them busy for a while, and rematerialized my VR.
Mario popped in a moment later. He turned to Jeeves, who had appeared at his elbow, and requested a coffee, then sat down and gazed at me.
“Okay, Mario, I know you well enough to realize the inscrutable act always means trouble. What’s up?”
He looked down and smiled, acknowledging the score. “Yeah, okay. Uh, I’m not sure where to begin.” Mario took a sip of his drink, then put it down and laced his fingers together. “You know we’ve been continuing to scout the stars around GL 877, trying to map out the Others’ depredations.”
I nodded. “I’m guessing the dramatic pause isn’t to give me good news.”
“Hah!” Mario shook his head. “If anything, they’ve been more active in the other direction. Probably a combination of luck and proximity of the stars in that area. Anyway, we’ve found five other life-bearing planets that they’ve depopulated, including another civilization. Late industrial, early atomic era. About equivalent to Earth in the mid-twentieth.”
“Wonderful. So the Others have yet another notch on their collective holster.”
“And another nail in their coffin. Bill, I know I’m probably preaching to the choir, but I don’t see any resolution to this that involves the Others continuing to exist.”
“Yeah, I know. It’s been discussed. You know it has. And we’re the ones who will have to do it, assuming we even can.”
“There’s Daedalus and Icarus…”
“Long shot.” I waved a hand at Mario. “What about you and your clones? You’re closest. Anything you could do?”
Mario smiled without any humor. “Sure. Except, by some enormous coincidence, there’s no metal to be had anywhere around GL 877.”
“Okay, got it.”
Mario was right, of course. The home system of the Others was out at the periphery of explored space. By definition, since exploration had pretty much stopped once we’d discovered them.
“Claude and a large number of the Bobs from the Delta Pavonis defense are heading for Gamma Pavonis. Maybe you can arrange something with them.” Mario looked at me with one eyebrow raised.
I nodded, then grimaced. “I’ll do that, Mario, but I think Claude took the defeat really hard. I’m not sure he’s going to be entirely rational where the Others are concerned. His talk was all about defending Gamma.”
“Well, you have a few more years until his group gets to Gamma. Maybe come up with a sales pitch.”
I sighed. If there was a hell, it was in sales.
Funeral for Julia
Riker
October 2218
Vulcan
I was going through the latest production reports from Charles, when I received a call from Justin Hendricks. With a smile, I dropped the reports. Talking to family was always top of the priority list. Justin had grown up; Space Cadet Justin was now a ship’s captain in the New Jerusalem Space Corps. The thought brought a chuckle. The space corps consisted of a half-dozen cargo and transport vessels, based loosely on the version 2 Heaven design.
Dexter, the current Bob-in-residence, had been aggressive about making the colonies independent of replicant support. The Omicron2 Eridani system’s twin planets now featured settlements from twelve different enclaves, and all of them had at least one vessel. Dexter was still hanging around the system, but demands on his time were down to a couple of items a week.
I had a smile on my face as I picked up the call, but lost it when I saw his expression. Justin’s eyes were glistening with barely-controlled tears.
“Uncle Will, it’s Mom. She’s in the hospital. It’s bad.”
*
I stepped out of the cargo drone and looked up at the hospital building. Then I looked down at my hands, and at my feet. Howard had lent me Manny without hesitation, when he heard. It took slightly more than an hour to fly Manny from Vulcan to Romulus.
This was my first time in an android, and I was nervous. It occurred to me that Howard’s first use of Manny was because of very similar circumstances. I hoped that wasn’t a trend. Sadly, with ephemerals, it probably was.
I saw Justin come out the front doors of the hospital, so I stepped away from the drone and sent it off. Justin hurried up to me, then stopped five feet away, suddenly bashful. This was the first time we’d met ‘in person’, so to speak.
“Uncle Will,” he said, blushing slightly. “You, uh, you look younger on the phone.”