escorts led them to the Master Control building where Professor Baltadonis and Tony Sciarra opened the glass doors and stepped outside to meet them. They, too, were wearing sunglasses.
Tony smiled when he saw Mary carrying Inky. “You haven’t changed, I see.”
“In some ways I have,” said Mary. Tucking Inky under her arm, she offered a handshake.
Sciarra took her hand gently. “I guess we’re all going back to the reef. We’re still the only experts on it, I’m told.”
Professor Baltadonis thanked Mary for coming and informed them that they would be spending a day or so in briefings. He looked Mary over doubtfully. “Are you healed? Everything in working order?”
Mary nodded. “Ninety seven percent, give or take,” she said. “Enough so plain old aspirin gets me through. Pain patches when it’s bad.”
“You’ve tested your systems while convalescing, as requested, I presume?”
Mary nodded. “As ordered. I was able to send and receive.”
“Are you including the clicker men? We suspected you might even be able to tune them in.”
“Blends with the Jupiter’s static. But it’s there.”
“Good.” Johnny smiled and thought for a moment. “We’ve prepared tapes for you, Mary, based on Diver’s recordings of the reef. Our exolinguists have deduced a click language that might help you during the next meeting.” He reached into his jacket and produced a small data cube. He handed it to her, then pointed to a group of buildings in the distance. “Your quarters are down the lane, at the end of that row of buildings. As to getting around, there’s the tubeways, of course, and there are ground vehicles. Stubbs claims to have brought a bicycle, but I haven’t seen him use it. Anyway, there’s lots of ways to get around.” Johnny squinted at the blazing light. “The solar lights are set on high at the moment, to stimulate plant growth. It won’t be that bright during the mission. This is just to give the ecology a kick start.” He scratched his head. “Let’s see, anything else? I’m sure there is. As you can see, it’s a big place – over twenty square kilometers. Right now, though, a walk to your domicile will let you get a feel for the place.”
“Catch you guys later,” said Tony with a salute, as he and Johnny went back into the building.
Mary dug a long leash out of her bag, clipped it to Inky’s collar, and put him down in the grass beside the rubbery black sidewalk, letting him prowl the turf as they walked. The path joined a broader avenue leading to a causeway that traced the circumference of the cylinder. As they walked slowly along, Alex sensed that Mary was deliberately avoiding looking up at the view. “Are you okay?” he asked.
“More disorienting than I expected, that’s all.” Mary pointed in the direction they were strolling. “That way, the world curves up. The other way, it’s flat. I’m not sure I can get used to it.”
Alex scratched his head and surveyed the view. To his eye, the engineers had done an admirable job of landscaping the place so the trees and architectural features hid the curvature, and the dizzying view of the opposite wall was generally obscured by the dazzling light overhead. Here and there, he had to admit, the distortion was very apparent and a bit disorienting, and he guessed Mary’s heightened senses found it even more so. “You’ll get used to it,” he assured her, “in time.”
They found their house at the end of a row of a dozen or more flat-roofed buildings. The door, with the name Rose on it in attractive white letters, opened for them as they came up the walk. Inky seemed to be enjoying the walk, not the least concerned about his bizarre surroundings. He bounded alongside them in short spurts as if chasing after insects. When they turned into their yard he bounded toward the house, straining at the leash, as if he knew he was home. “Inky likes it, at least,” grunted Mary, tugging at the leash.
Though the
Tony smiled when he saw Mary carrying Inky. “You haven’t changed, I see.”
“In some ways I have,” said Mary. Tucking Inky under her arm, she offered a handshake.
Sciarra took her hand gently. “I guess we’re all going back to the reef. We’re still the only experts on it, I’m told.”
Professor Baltadonis thanked Mary for coming and informed them that they would be spending a day or so in briefings. He looked Mary over doubtfully. “Are you healed? Everything in working order?”
Mary nodded. “Ninety seven percent, give or take,” she said. “Enough so plain old aspirin gets me through. Pain patches when it’s bad.”
“You’ve tested your systems while convalescing, as requested, I presume?”
Mary nodded. “As ordered. I was able to send and receive.”
“Are you including the clicker men? We suspected you might even be able to tune them in.”
“Blends with the Jupiter’s static. But it’s there.”
“Good.” Johnny smiled and thought for a moment. “We’ve prepared tapes for you, Mary, based on Diver’s recordings of the reef. Our exolinguists have deduced a click language that might help you during the next meeting.” He reached into his jacket and produced a small data cube. He handed it to her, then pointed to a group of buildings in the distance. “Your quarters are down the lane, at the end of that row of buildings. As to getting around, there’s the tubeways, of course, and there are ground vehicles. Stubbs claims to have brought a bicycle, but I haven’t seen him use it. Anyway, there’s lots of ways to get around.” Johnny squinted at the blazing light. “The solar lights are set on high at the moment, to stimulate plant growth. It won’t be that bright during the mission. This is just to give the ecology a kick start.” He scratched his head. “Let’s see, anything else? I’m sure there is. As you can see, it’s a big place – over twenty square kilometers. Right now, though, a walk to your domicile will let you get a feel for the place.”
“Catch you guys later,” said Tony with a salute, as he and Johnny went back into the building.
Mary dug a long leash out of her bag, clipped it to Inky’s collar, and put him down in the grass beside the rubbery black sidewalk, letting him prowl the turf as they walked. The path joined a broader avenue leading to a causeway that traced the circumference of the cylinder. As they walked slowly along, Alex sensed that Mary was deliberately avoiding looking up at the view. “Are you okay?” he asked.
“More disorienting than I expected, that’s all.” Mary pointed in the direction they were strolling. “That way, the world curves up. The other way, it’s flat. I’m not sure I can get used to it.”
Alex scratched his head and surveyed the view. To his eye, the engineers had done an admirable job of landscaping the place so the trees and architectural features hid the curvature, and the dizzying view of the opposite wall was generally obscured by the dazzling light overhead. Here and there, he had to admit, the distortion was very apparent and a bit disorienting, and he guessed Mary’s heightened senses found it even more so. “You’ll get used to it,” he assured her, “in time.”
They found their house at the end of a row of a dozen or more flat-roofed buildings. The door, with the name Rose on it in attractive white letters, opened for them as they came up the walk. Inky seemed to be enjoying the walk, not the least concerned about his bizarre surroundings. He bounded alongside them in short spurts as if chasing after insects. When they turned into their yard he bounded toward the house, straining at the leash, as if he knew he was home. “Inky likes it, at least,” grunted Mary, tugging at the leash.
Though the
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