TWO
“So, the first piece of news is good: Crystal’s accounting came through and looks like the previous seniors had better instincts than I knew. We’re in good shape to get those upgrades Rusko’s been wantin’.”
Tranh paused to take a slow look around the table, making sure he connected with each of them, and they understood what he’d said. Connection took a little time with Susrim, who was studying on his piece of sweet dough, but he finally looked up, met Tranh’s eyes, and nodded.
“Now, when I say the accounting’s in, that’s a direct transfer, Crystal’s account to ours. And that’s all the grey and questionables off our decks. Dulcimer’s clean for the first time in my life.”
He sighed, lifted his mug, and put it down with a sigh.
“That’s a weight. A big weight off me,” he said. “Been wantin’ to go reg’lar for a long, long time.”
“And you did it, Captain,” Rusko said, quiet and firm. “We’re clean and ready to fly.”
Tranh smiled faintly.
“Which brings up the next item—where do we go? Pilots and traders’ve been working on that late into their sleep shifts, and the plain telling is that there’s no easy door into reg’lar on the trade side. Previous admin didn’t want to be tied into a Loop. Reg’lar ships got reg’lar ports, reg’lar goods, and we don’t have that—not yet, we don’t have it.”
“We got contacts, though,” Susrim said, his voice sharp. “Da and Ma had plenty contacts.”
Tranh turned to him.
“We’re done with those contacts. All else aside, those contacts set Da and Ma up for getting killed.”
Susrim frowned. “That’s going a bit, Tranh. Not sayin’ that they didn’t take risks. ’course they did—any ship does spec-n-special takes risks. But to say Choody pointed them into dying—”
“And yet,” Rusko said, “we have the log entries. Captain Patel was keeping a second log book, not meant for the eyes of inspectors, should an inspection be impossible to avoid. We found it in a bin with the private cargo. Turns out previous admin’d been skimming, and it seems they got found out when they skimmed a little too deep and didn’t turn over an item that was particularly wanted.”
Susrim stared. “I got your word,” he said after a long pause. “Lemme read it for myself.”
“It’s gone,” Tranh said, briskly. “I’ll vouch for it having been here, and the account being just what Rusko’s said. Believe us or don’t, that’s an aside. Our route—none of our routes—will take us through, by, or near Choody nor any other of previous admin’s contacts. We’re reg’lar now, Susrim, unnerstand it?”
Tranh wasn’t just stern, Squithy thought, sitting next to Klay on the opposite end of the table from Susrim. Tranh was mad. More particularly, Rusko was mad, and Squithy didn’t think she’d ever seen that.
She bit her lip, and thought hard at Susrim to be quiet, while the norbears listened with interest.
“How reg’lar can we be, when the traders can’t find us bidness, nor the pilots any route?”
Squithy clenched her stomach, waiting for Tranh to yell, but he only nodded and raised his mug at Susrim.
“Now, that’s the point, see? It’s been worrying us just as much as I see it’s been worrying you—how’re we gonna pay our way?”
Tranh paused and looked around the table. Lifted his mug, saw it was empty and put it back down.
Squithy got up and took it over to the hotpot for a refill. Rusko and Falmer held their mugs up, too, and she made those refills.
“Klay?” she asked, when she got back to the table, and though she didn’t want to—“Susrim?”
“I’m good,” Klay told her with a smile. Susrim didn’t even look at her.
“Thanks, Squith,” Tranh said, smiling up at her before he looked at them all again, one by one, and finally coming to rest to Susrim.
“Comes about, we’re lucky in our timing. The South Axis Congress and Trade Fair’s about to get started at Meldyne Station. The congress is where the commissioners hear bidness from the Loopers trading the South Axis; the trade fair is just that. We can pick up connections there, meet other reg’lar ships and form associations. I’m told there’s traders who’ll sit down and design a Loop for a ship—lot of call for that, just right now, with the Dust moving like it is. Seventeen Worlds might be where we need to start. It’s looking promising.”
“Told,” Susrim repeated. “Who told you about this, Tranh?”
“Pilot Dulsey,” Tranh said. “Rusko’s determined that there ain’t anything that woman don’t know, and I’m inclined to agree.”
“So,” Susrim said, “I think I’m unnerstanding this. We’re trading Choody for Crystal, is that your way of going reg’lar?”
Tranh’s shoulder’s stiffened, and it was Rusko who answered.
“Our way of going reg’lar is listening to well-met advice when it’s offered and doing our research. That’s been my part while Klay’s been considering routes. We could do worse than showing up at that conference. Dulcimer’s got a lot to offer; we just need another head or three on how to do best for ourselves.”
“That’s it,” said Tranh, with a brisk nod. “So, we’ll be setting course for Meldyne Station.”
“After,” Klay said quietly, “we make rendezvous with Alkovo Alvokita and get the norbears who’re going with her safe aboard.”
“Aren’t they all going?” Susrim’s voice was sharp as he stared down the table at Klay. “You an’ me, we talked about this.”
“You talked about it,” Klay said. “If you remember, the points are: the norbears aren’t animals, they get to decide which, if any, of them goes with Dulsey, and which, if any, stay with Dulcimer. Then there’s the unnerstanding shared by Squithy, senior crew, norbears, and Dulsey, which is that the ones who travel with her, are coming back to Dulcimer when they’ve finished their tour.”
“Oh, Squithy’s got an unnerstanding, does she?” Susrim said, “An’ it weighs more with senior crew than what sensible people think.”
It was like a slap against her mind. Squithy gasped, thoughts flickering—and there were Ditsy and Mitsy with her, projecting the wrist-patting sensation, and she realized she was holding Klay’s hand too tight, and tried to ease her grip, only then understanding that it was Klay who was holding on that hard.
“Susrim!” Falmer snapped, leaning forward and staring down the table at him. “You apologize, right now.”
“Apologize to who?”
“To Squithy,” Klay said, his voice was tight.
Inside her head, Mitsy showed her the picture of Klay braving the tobor, all shiny, like they were telling her he was doing that now, for her.
“Apologize to Squithy for what?” Susrim asked, and stared at her, his expression pure mean. “You mad at me, Squith?” he asked.
She took a breath.
“Yes, I am,” she said, and was sorry that her voice shook.
“Really?” Susrim said, looking even meaner. “Now I’m wondering—how many times you been mad at me, ever?”
Mitsy quietly produced the memory of her standing between the norbear troupe and too eager guns, but that was all right; she wasn’t even tempted to start counting.
“A lot of times, I been mad at you, Susrim,” she said. “That’s how I know I’m mad at you now, it’s such a familiar feeling—”
She heard Rusko make his not-laughing sound, and stopped, glancing at him.
“No, go on, Squith,” Tranh said, real quiet. “Finish it out.”
She took a breath, and met Susrim’s eyes again. He was still looking mean, but a little puzzled, too. “You think I’m not sensible, but worse than that, you think I’m not a person—you think nobody’s a person, except you! And that’s bad thinking, Susrim, really bad thinking. It’s no wonder you can’t unnerstand that the norbears are people, and I tell you something—I don’t want your apology, what I want is for you to change your thinking. You might think you can’t, but I changed my thinking, so I can tell you it’s possible, and if I did, I’m sure you can!”
There was silence around the table. Klay’s grip on her hand eased off a little and when she turned her head to look at him, he was smiling, looking—pleased.
Tranh cleared his throat.
“Squith, I unnerstand you don’t want Susrim’s apology, but you’re leaving me in a bind. Ship’s rules say, if there’s wrong said or done, offending party has to tender an apology. All present, and not-present, too, I’m guessing, heard Susrim say wrong. Gotta enforce the rules, don’t I?”
She took a deep breath.
“Yes, you do. You’re the captain.” She took another breath, and looked at Susrim.
“All right,” she said. “I’ll hear your apology.”
He considered her, his eyes still mean, glanced down at his plate, and back to her face.
“Squithen, I apologize for suggesting that maybe you aren’t sensible,” he said, absolutely flat-voiced.
Squithy felt Klay shift beside her, heard Rusko’s boot scrape against the deck, and Falmer take a sharp breath. She held up her hand, keeping her eyes on Susrim.
“Apology accepted,” she said.
There was another bit of silence before Tranh gave her a smile.
“Makes my job easier. ’Preciate it, Squith.”
“You’re welcome, Tranh,” she said, and heard Rusko not-laugh again.
“So, where we are,” Tranh said, “is we’re waiting for news of Dulsey’s rendezvous point. After we transfer the alt-crew we’re loaning her, we’ll be heading for Meldyne and the trade fair. We got some cargo, but I don’t expect it to do much where we’re going. We do have skills we can offer, and I want you all to review what you can do, once we dock.”
Falmer’s face lit at that. “Big conference and fair, they’ll be wantin’ cooks and prep staff. I’ll offer myself to catering when we get in.”
“Good idea,” Tranh said, and looked around the table. “Rest of you, think on it, and when you got something, tell Klay, so he can add it to our packet.
“And, now…” He pushed back from the table and stood.
“I think we’re done here. Glad we could all meet and go over these things in person.”