6
The seed of revolution is repression – Woodrow Wilson
Hoshi and Travis kept watching the Daranaean broadcast.
"We have some still photographs from the home of Beta Councilor Elemus. Oh, this is exciting! These are the first ever pictures of barefaced humans!" gushed the news reader.
Pictures were then projected on the broadcast. There was Jonathan standing and smiling and shaking hands with Arnis, and another was of the two doctors standing together with Elemus. There was another one of Malcolm and Hamilton standing with Elemus and Arnis.
"I don't see any photographs of Captain Hernandez or Lucy," Travis pointed out.
"And there aren't any of the men's wives. Didn't the reports say that the wealthy ones all have three wives? There have gotta be women there, I figure," Hoshi said.
"Maybe they're camera shy. Or maybe those pictures just aren't up yet," Travis suggested.
=/\=
There were no pictures of the human women because they had been looking to escape the press's questions. Erika and Lucy walked toward the back of the house, exploring a little. They almost stumbled over Cama, who looked down. "It's all right," Erika said, "do you remember us? You met Doctor Nguyen a few years ago."
"Yes, I remember. He is kind," Cama said.
"I hope we're not intruding," Lucy said, "but those questions were getting to be a bit much. When they asked us to show off our pouches, well, we don't have pouches."
"And we're not exactly interested in baring our stomachs just for a press photograph," Erika said.
Cama shrugged. "I am not asked to because I am in the last caste."
An came over. "You had about enough, too?" Lucy asked.
"Yep, I was a little tired of the prying, asking why I wasn't married yet. Reminded me of my grandmothers! Cama, how are you feeling?" He couldn't help it, to be a doctor, and took out a scanner and checked her. She had lost some weight since he had last seen her. Her pouchling moved, its silhouette visible just under her skin.
"I am often tired, as is Libba. We are, as you can see. It gets harder every time. Doctor, can I, can I ask you something?"
"Of course," he said.
"Do you use Krivian Weed?" Cama asked.
"I've never heard of it," he said.
"It is how we determine the gender of our young before they are born. Come outside, and I can show you, if you like."
With little else to do, the three of them went outside with her and over to what looked like a box hedge.
"See, all you do is you take off a little sprig. And you stick it in your mouth and get saliva on it." She demonstrated, and then pulled the leaf out. "It has turned grey, see? That means I am carrying another boy child, just like my pouchling."
"What color does it turn for a girl?" Erika asked.
"A dark purple-red," Cama replied.
"And what if you do this and you're not pregnant, or if a man does it?" An asked.
"Then the leaf stays green." Cama took a deep breath. "It has a good smell, kind of a mint, so many families grow it. I do not leave here often. I am not allowed to leave without a male escort, but the garden is pleasant, and today is a pretty day." She sniffed the air.
Libba came over to see what was going on but didn't take a leaf for herself. "Children's learning is done for the day." Her own pouchling seemed to turn over.
An scanned the hedge and its leaves and didn't find any poisons. "I wonder if this would work on humans," he said, "I can't find anything in here that can possibly hurt us." He broke off a sprig and stuck it in his mouth, then fished it out. As expected, it was green. "It even tastes a little minty. Anyone else care to try?"
"Uh, sure, why not?" said Erika, who broke off a leaf. Lucy did the same.
When they presented their sprigs, Erika's was green and Lucy's was a mulberry color.
"A girl child!" Cama exclaimed, smiling and clapping her hands.
"But I'm not, uh…" Lucy said.
An turned the scanner on her. "I take it this is unexpected," he said, "I think you're about a week and a half along. Phlox will be able to tell better once he gets you into the imaging chamber."
"We have a ritual," Libba said, "when we find out that a wife is carrying a child. Would you like to participate in it? It's very fast." She, too, was smiling – it seemed as if it was the first time since they had arrived.
"Um, sure," Lucy said, still a little shocked.
The two Daranaean women joined hands with her, and with each other, forming a triangle. "First, the Prime Wife would speak. She would say, 'I am the Prime Wife. From me you will receive guidance.' And then the secondary," Libba said, "that's me, I say, 'I am the secondary. From me you will receive learning.'"
"And then I speak", Cama said, "and I say, 'I am the last caste female. From me you will receive service.'"
"Then the mother speaks," Libba said.
"What do I say?" Lucy asked.
"You say, 'I am the mother.'"
"I am the mother," Lucy repeated.
"'From me you will receive love.'"
"From me you will receive love." Lucy repeated. "That's beautiful."
"We also have a ritual for birth. That is for all of the women in the household. Would you join us, Captain?" Libba asked.
"Why not?"
This time, Erika, Libba and Cama joined hands and Lucy stood in the middle. Libba again began. "First the Prime Wife would speak. She would say, 'I am the Prime Wife. I will give direction.'" Then I speak, and I say, 'I am the secondary. I will give time.'"
"Then I speak," said Cama, "and I say, 'I am the last caste female. I will give labor.'"
"Then the mother speaks", Libba said, "She says, 'I am the mother.'"
"I am the mother," Lucy repeated.
"'I will give nourishment.'"
"I will give nourishment," Lucy repeated.
"Then the daughters speak," Cama said, "they go in turn, first the Prime Wife's daughters, in age order, then the secondary's, and then the last caste female's daughters. What they say depends on whether it is a boy child or a girl child. For a girl child, they say, 'I am' – and then they say their name."
"I am Erika," Erika said.
"'And I offer sisterhood'," Cama said.
"And I offer sisterhood," Erika repeated.
"What's the difference if it's a son?" An asked.
"Then the sisters say, 'and I offer sisterhood and obedience when you are older.'" Libba said.
"Oh, and your baby must have a gift!" Cama broke ranks and rushed into the house.
"You don't have to give me anything," Lucy said.
"Oh, we have extras. Ah, there it is," Libba said.
Cama had in her hands a small, light yellow baby blanket and presented it to Lucy.
"I think this is the softest thing I've ever felt," Lucy said.
"It is, their skin is very delicate," Cama explained.
"The mother, while the child is a pouchling, the mother cannot cover her own belly with a blanket, because the pouchling cannot get enough air. So the mother uses a regular blanket on her legs and a little blanket like this by her face and chest. This also passes over the mother's scent to the blanket."
"When the pouchling comes out for the first time," Cama said, "the entire family is involved. The baby is named, and swaddled, and given the blanket that the mother has been sleeping on. This keeps the baby warm and it helps the baby to sleep better."
"Thank you so much," Lucy said, voice breaking a little bit.
"Even girl children deserve a gift," Cama said, "yes?"
Lucy just nodded. "Could, um, could we keep this between ourselves until we get back on the ships? I, uh, I better talk to Andrew before I talk to anyone else."
"Of course," An said as they made their way back to where the others were.
=/\=
"Look, you're right, there's a picture of the women," Hoshi said after several more minutes.
It was a picture of Lucy and Erika. The news reader said, "How very strange! Our reporter on the scene, Craethe, tells us that the women state that they do not have pouches. What a fascinating race these humans are! We will tell you more as this story develops."
"I wonder if they asked for proof," Travis said.
Hoshi was about to comment when there was the sound of a Communications hail. She went over to her station to answer it. "Hiya, Tate," she said. It was the Communications Officer from the Excelsior.
"Hoshi, we think we picked up something on long-range sensors. Can you confirm? We're looking at the farthermost planet in the Daranaean system; you know the one where the Klingons are building something? We think we're detecting nuclear fission there."
"I'll check it out, and alert Captain Archer. You'd better call Captain Hernandez as well. Sato out." She first turned off the Daranaean broadcast so that they could see the main viewer, and then worked the controls, "Captain Archer?"
"Go ahead."
"We think you're about to get some company. Actually, we all are. The Excelsior thinks they detected nuclear fission on that remote planet."
"Got it. We'll head back. Archer out."
"Are your people in danger being here?" Arnis asked.
"No, but the shuttles could be fired upon," Malcolm said, "I recommend beaming up, sir. We could collect the shuttles later, I suppose."
"Good idea," Jonathan said, "do you, uh, mind if we leave them here?" he asked Elemus.
"Not at all. Hopefully, this will only be a short interruption in your visit."
They got into the shuttles. Libba came over to say good-bye. "Doctor Nguyen," she said, "I hope we see you again soon."
"I hope I see you, too," he said. She looked so thin and tired, despite her pregnancy. He had been pleasantly shocked that she was still alive.
They departed.
=/\=
Mistra waited in her cell. For what, she did not know. She leaned back on the mats and lifted the top of the pouch carefully. Looking back at her were huge dark brown eyes, framed by a little face with brindle fur and soft, whisper-thin whiskers. The pouchling continued nursing but watched her intently. "I know I'm not supposed to do this, for you can get cold," Mistra said, "but I know you'll be out in maybe a week." She reached in with her right hand and gently stroked the pouchling's head. "The family is supposed to welcome you when you come out of the pouch for the first time. I'm afraid it will only be me. But I will welcome you, and I will name you then."
The pouchling just kept nursing and staring at her as she spoke.
"And then two months after that, your little brother will be born. Can you feel him, moving around just below you? He will come out and, and, we will welcome him and," she paused. Normally, the child would be welcomed by the females just after he had gone into the pouch. But she was it, and she knew that, once the boy child was born, he would be taken from her, and would never be placed inside her pouch. And then she and the pouchling would be taken away for execution, "I," Mistra couldn't help it, but began to weep a little, "you and I, we will, when your, your brother is born, you and I, we will go to the place with all of the good smells. We will be together forever and we will never be cold or sick or hungry. I, I just wanted to, to look at you right now, so that we would be sure to remember each other, and be able to find each other, when we go to the, the place with all of the good smells."
She could not help it, and wept, looking down at the pouchling who would not be permitted to live for very long, and for the most foolish and unjust of reasons that she did not fully understand.
13
