Note and Alert: As some of you may be aware, there was a major crash on this website over a month ago, and for the last few weeks the major email providers have been blocking FF net's email alerts being delivered, so it may be that many of you aren't getting email alerts (I'm not getting them for publishing or alerts of any kind still). Apparently this is a known problem, but the fix doesn't appear to have happened yet. You may see a notification on your account that your email has been bounced back so the site has turned off your notifications. Despite following instructions to add the email address to the safe list, the notifications are still being rejected by the email providers.
It has prompted me to finally download the app – which does seem to have working notifications. Though, I can't see PMs on the app, except three very old ones I had never seen (apologies to anyone who hasn't had a reply to me to these old messages if sent via the app). I try to reply to all messages and/or reviews sent to me, but only if I've been told by FF net that they are there to read! So apologies to anyone who has not had a response to a message/review of late or has not received any alerts from the site.
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ACT 2 – TRUTH
Chapter 42 – The Retreat
"Inside an asteroid?" Jobrill asked with a frown from the far side of the tactical display table in Central Station.
"Yes," Nalla repeated, following the conclusion of her report.
The upward light of the tactical display table cast Nalla's purple skin in rather strange shadows, the exhaustion from her former lack of sleep still somewhat obvious in the darker shadows under her eyes, but she looked alert and composed. By Teyla's estimation, Nalla had gotten at least six hours sleep before Teyla had heard the screaming. She had leapt up from her hours-long comfortable seat in Nalla's quarters and had thrown aside the dividing curtain to see Nalla thrashing in her bed as if running in her sleep, her duvet tangled up around her.
"Are you sure?" Jobrill pressed.
"Yes," Nalla nodded with a calm confidence that could not be further from the panic she had experienced in her nightmare.
Though, 'nightmare' was not an accurate description, because clearly Nalla had been locked into a psychic connection with these lifeforms she had been describing, one of which had caused her to scream like a terrified child.
Teyla could almost still hear the panicked terror in her ears.
But now Nalla stood confident and composed in front of the other Elite, the rest of the Hunt Fleet Commanders listening in via group audio link.
"Forgive me, Honoured Elite," Commander Ara asked over the link from The Valse. "My understanding was that your gift is empathic in nature, that you sense emotions only, not visual and technical information as you seem to have now."
To her right, Teyla saw Halling frown at the direct, clearly doubt-filled question from the Satedan Commander.
"My empathic skills are my primary gift, yes," Nalla replied, seemingly having taken no insult at the question.
"All Pelydrians," Nalla continued, "share a type of telepathy, not the ability to read minds as with the telepathic gift. Instead it is a way that we can sense our own kind over great distances, not communication in the way of a conversation of thoughts, but instead a…." Nalla paused, clearly struggling to find a way to explain. "A connection, a sharing of what one is experiencing in the moment." She sighed and shook her head, her more composed confidence cracking for a brief moment. "I have never experienced that type of connection with anyone, or anything, other than my own people. It explains now why it was so confusing for me initially. This plant lifeform seems to be able to communicate on a similar frequency, for want of a better description."
"But the other lifeform with it, the other alien presence, is different?" Si asked Nalla from her side.
"Yes," Nalla looked round at him. "It is far more…standard, in the way that I sensed it. I felt it's emotional web, it's wants and desires."
"So, it is not able to communicate on this other frequency? It isn't able to see what you see, what you are experiencing?" Halling checked.
"No," Nalla shifted her gaze across to him. "And where the plant lifeform was curious, kind even, during our psychic connection, this other creature is clearly a predator by nature. Violent, hungry."
"Hungry," Teyla caught on the word. "As Wraith are hungry?" She asked.
Nalla frowned, her violet eyes unfocusing as she turned her awareness inwards, studying what she had experienced, comparing it to what she had no doubt sensed from Wraith thousands of times. Teyla's own gift was very different to Nalla's, but she knew all too well how the Wraith hungered…
"Similar, yes," Nalla decided, her eyes lifting to meet Teyla's across the light of the tactical display table between them.
Teyla held her eye contact. "So, perhaps it is the Skerti?" She posited.
"Perhaps," Nalla nodded. "But, different, stronger."
"We know from the Skerti Queen's corpse," Si intoned beside her, "and Halling's encounter with her," Si' dark eyes moved across to Halling, "that the Skerti appear to be far more telepathic than the Wraith."
"Dangerously so," Halling summarised simply, his tone heavy. They had all watched his reenactment of his battle with the Skerti Queen many times, knew how close to death he had been, and how shockingly powerful the Skerti Queen had appeared to be, not just in her mind but in the strange, elongated limbs she had used to overpower him.
If Seeal had not arrived when she had, sent by Oneakka…
Teyla glanced away from her oldest friend, her mind filled with the images of that recreated battle. Sitayi had warned him, foretold his possible death in the darkness, alone…
A flash of old anger rose up in Teyla's throat, the hurt that he'd not shared his fearful prediction with her. But he had apologised and explained his reasoning, and she understood; especially now that she was withholding her own secret from everyone around her.
"If it is the Skerti then," Jobrill put in, "then we know they are here, in the asteroid field somewhere."
"And I believe the plant lifeform is the key as to how," Nalla added. "It was coating the inner rock of the tunnels inside the asteroid, producing light and warmth, and, I'm almost certain, a breathable atmosphere as well."
"Terraforming," Halling uttered.
"Terraforming inside an asteroid," Jobrill frowned. "If that is possible, then any of the thousands of asteroids out there could be harbouring any number of Skerti."
Teyla dropped her gaze instantly down to the central and largest display on the tactical display table, the wide local area around the Hunt Fleet a literal floating sea of rocks.
"When we were on the Rogue Hive," Halling put in, "the Skerti Queen's life-sign was easily detected by our sensor pads, in fact she registered as warmer, more obvious on sensors. So, if they are here in the asteroids, in theory we should be able to detect them still. And if this plant is creating a warm, oxygenated environment for the Skerti, then that should be bright and obvious on sensors." Halling glanced slightly upwards. "You agree, Commander Teije?" He asked of the Sensor Platform Ship's Commander.
"Yes," Commander Teije replied. "Though, the exact composition of a particular asteroid and how deep the cave system may be inside it, could potentially conceal them from our sensors, especially at a distance."
"If they have dug down into asteroids, surely we would be able to see that from the surface?" young Isen asked.
"Possibly," Halling replied. "But we know that Salvagers have been active in this area, and that they mine asteroids."
"So perhaps the Skerti are utilising mining tunnels left by the Salvagers," Jobrill nodded at the theory.
"Perhaps," Seifer put in from The Valse, "this is where the Skerti have been all this time? Living inside terraformed asteroids."
"The Salvagers reported that they only started working in this region in the last year or so," Jobrill pointed out.
"Perhaps there are older tunnel systems," Halling considered. "It could be that the Ancestors mined these asteroids, or even the Skerti themselves, and they have been living in them all this time."
Teyla frowned. "Hibernating."
"Until the Salvagers arrived to investigate the asteroid field for materials," Halling ran the theory. "And woke them up."
"If that is true, then we are suggesting that the massive shift in this asteroid field is due to the Skerti?" Jobrill asked. "That their awakening shifted the field somehow?"
"I do not see how," Commander Teije put in from the Sensor Platform Ship. "From just the small number of sensor satellites we have deployed so far, combined with all the Fleet ships' sensors, we know this asteroid field is vast and has clearly been here since the formation of this local ancient solar system. The star here may be old and dim, but clearly this was once an active system billions of years ago, with collisions between infant planets and moons scattering into this asteroid field. For so many pieces of individual rocks to all have moved, and in only the relatively short timeframe both our and Atlantis' sensors have identified, implies something happened in this area that was a significant, but short term gravitational event. Something that shifted the entire field as one. Some aliens waking up inside some asteroids, even if it was in all of them…I cannot see how that could move an entire asteroid field."
"What is your current working theory on what did cause the asteroid field to shift, Commander?" Halling asked.
"At the moment, our best theories are that it was either a rogue passing star that put this system into disarray – though we have not identified such a star locally - or something like a supernova event occurring on the far side of the asteroid field. However, the local system appears to be stable and there aren't any standard markers of a supernova detectable. Though, given how massive this asteroid field is, it may be that the markers that would explain what happened are just not detectable from our current location. Ideally, we would prefer to jump beyond the asteroid field to investigate a source of the responsible phenomena."
"But now we have evidence that it is possible that the Skerti are inside the asteroid field, that takes precedence over a scientific investigation beyond the asteroid field," Jobrill put in quickly.
"We do not know for certain that the Skerti are all in the asteroid field," Nalla added lifting her hands. "If the predator presence I sensed alongside the plant lifeform is a Skerti, it was only one emotional web, one mind. Only one Skerti."
"Unless they have a hive mind?" Halling suggested.
"No," Nalla shook her head firmly. "It was just one individual and it seemed…" she frowned. "As if it was alone, bored even."
Teyla lifted her gaze up from the asteroid map. "Bored?" She repeated Nalla's summary.
"Yes," Nalla nodded. "I believe it is alone in that asteroid, with only the plant lifeform there creating living conditions for it."
"One Skerti, you are certain?" Teyla pressed.
"Just one," Nalla confirmed confidently.
"That seems strange," Teyla frowned.
Nalla nodded. "I agree, unless it is a sentry. A lookout position?"
"Could the other Skerti be in hibernation and therefore undetectable by you? As hibernating Wraith can be to Seekers?" Seifer asked over the group link. "The one you sensed could be bored because it is the only one awake."
Nalla angled her head. "I do not believe so. There was a sense of true isolation, for the predator and the plant lifeform. I believe they were alone together inside one asteroid."
"And you have not detected any other examples?" Teyla asked. "Could there be more predators with a plant lifeform on different asteroids?"
"No," Nalla stated. "Just the plant lifeform and the one predator. They were so obvious to me as soon as the Transport first arrived in this asteroid field, and still are, though I now know how to distance myself from their presence. No, I am certain I would be able to detect more if they were here. There is just one predator here, with the plant. Perhaps, keeping watch."
"It could be that the Skerti are beyond the edge of the galaxy," Commander Ara suggested from The Valse. "We are close enough to the edge here, so what if they have been somehow trapped in the void between galaxies? Now that they are seemingly back in our galaxy, they could have set up watchtowers in case we track down their trail. An internally terraformed asteroid is an excellent hiding place. If it were not for Honoured Elite Nalla's psychic skills, we would have no idea there was one here."
"You said that the predator presence didn't seem to detect you for a while during your communication with the plant lifeform," Si asked Nalla.
"Yes, then when it became aware of me, it was trying to find my mind, to hunt me psychically," Nalla replied as she looked up at Si stood tall beside her.
Si nodded, clearly pondering something. "If it is a Skerti and we know them to be highly telepathic, then it makes some sense that they would use a terraforming plant that was also telepathic."
"As the Wraith do with Hives," Jobrill added.
Teyla wasn't entirely sure that matched, given the mental connection on Hives was rooted in a Human victim first assimilated by Hive seeds.
"Hives produce heat, warmth and atmosphere for Wraith," Si continued, "it makes sense that the Skerti may do the same with other forms of life, but ones with a strong psychic ability, allowing them to control them, guide what they want."
Nalla nodded up at Si. "And then the predator sensed me through my communication with the plant, with which it is psychically linked. The plant acting as a bridge."
Si nodded. "You are certain it was one combination of the plant and a possible Skerti, but are you certain there is only one plant lifeform in the asteroid field?" He asked gently.
Nalla glanced aside, tilting her head.
Upon waking, Nalla had assured Teyla that she had found way to block the Presence, to enable her to hide and distance her mind from the aliens. Still, Teyla watched Nalla's face and body language carefully, as she did fellow Seekers when they looked to connect deeply with a Wraith…just in case…
"I still think there is only one," Nalla concluded after a pause. "But the plant is a large lifeform, stretched down through the tunnels. I wonder if it's powerful telepathic presence is proportionate to how large it is physically. It is possible there are smaller versions on other asteroids, but I would expect to sense them as well given how obvious this one is to me."
"If the plant were not there as a bridge, do you think that you would still be able to detect the predator if it was entirely alone?" Si asked next.
Teyla snapped her gaze down to the crowded sensor display again, the asteroids in just the local area around the Hunt Fleet numbering in the hundreds, admittedly of varying sizes. If there as even only one Skerti on each, then…
"I cannot be sure of the distance at which I am detecting this one, the plant possibly acting as a bridge between us in physical distance as well as psychically. Without another plant lifeform present locally, it is possible there could be more predators than I can currently detect," Nalla conceded. "But how would they survive on the asteroids without the terraforming abilities of the plant?"
"There is much we do not know of the Skerti," Teyla pointed out.
Jobrill's hand reached into Teyla's view of the sensor map, running an update on the sensor readings. "If they are using ships, we are still not detecting any hints of active engines, heat signatures or hyperspace readings."
"At least not in the immediate area of our sensor range," Isen put in sensibly.
"So," Seifer stated over the link audio, "If we do have one single, potential Skerti hidden in an asteroid somewhere in the field, feeling isolated and bored. Perhaps indeed a lookout for its fellow Skerti; then that presents us with an opportunity. If it is alone, then it is potentially vulnerable."
"For us to capture it," Jobrill concluded his point.
"But," Teyla added in quickly, "if the Skerti are psychically connected to each other, and if it is a sentry on watch of this region, then that it sensed Nalla may mean it will call in support. Perhaps has already done so."
"Then we need to move quickly," Jobrill replied. "Find where it is hiding in the asteroid field, capture it, and take samples of this plant lifeform as well for study."
"Before any Skerti back-up arrives," Seifer added.
"Are you able to tell in which direction this particular asteroid is located, Nalla?" Jobrill asked.
"No, but I believe it is reasonably close. If it were on the very far distant side of this massive asteroid field, I think I would be able to tell."
Si reached into the centre of the tactical display table and tapped the sensor map. "You said you felt the plant was covering a long expanse of tunnel?"
"Yes," Nalla confirmed.
"So we can exclude smaller asteroids," Si called up a search filter. "Could you tell if there was gravity on the asteroid?" He asked Nalla next.
"There seemed to be, yes."
Si began typing in filtering criteria into the sensor map. "If we estimate that any tunnelling would be carefully done not to drill too deep and risk potential collapse, the asteroid will have to be a certain size…"
Teyla watched him entering in the data, watching the number of local asteroids that fit the criteria glowing brighter on the screen.
"The Salvagers and the Ancestors had excellent tunnelling equipment, but it is unlikely anyone would drill down into any rock that was denser than rating 5.5," Commander Teije added and Si typed in that criteria.
"The asteroid would be unlikely to be actively spinning at any significant speed as well," Jobrill suggested.
"If it is a sentry post," Teyla considered, "I would not place it too deep inside the centre of the asteroid field either, as that would limit their sensors of this outer area."
"And I doubt they would use an asteroid isolated separately too far away from others, like that large rock," Jobrill pointed to one of the largest on the current sensor map, the area around it relatively void of other smaller asteroids. "It would allow them clear sight but risk being too easily detected."
Si entered more detail into the filter and then triggered up the final results.
"Twenty six within just our immediate sensor range," Jorbill frowned.
Teyla leaned forward, studying the spread of the filtered asteroids within the rest. "They are too spread out for us to examine each in turn, it would take too long and potentially lose our advantage of time to find the target."
"And there is no guarantee the target asteroid is among this twenty six," Halling noted. "The further forward we move, the more asteroids will enter our sensor range and increase the potentials."
"In theory," Commander Teije put in, "if there is a terraformed internal structure with two lifeforms in it, there should be something on sensors, even if they are mostly obscured by the rock composition of the asteroid. If we fly close enough to them, proceeding forward, we may detect some heat leakage from the target."
Halling pointed to the sensor map. "Now we are out of the denser outer ring of the asteroid field, there is plenty of space for us to deploy the Fleet, perhaps splitting in two again. If we send one half of the Fleet this way and the other half that way," he indicated opposite directions on the map. "Following along inside the outer ring which provides something of a natural pathway for us, we can train sensors on the potential targets. For those obscured further in, we can deploy Fighters in to scan closer."
"And by spreading the ships within each half of the Fleet," Commander Teije recommended, "Would also allow us to increase our sensor range."
"But also increase the chances of being ambushed," Teyla put in. "Spreading ourselves too thin will limit our ability to respond to any attack."
"But with the more open space, we can respond relatively quickly," Jobrill replied.
"And we can deploy Fighters in through the asteroids themselves to bring help faster," Si added.
"And technically there is enough space for a hyperspace jump within here," Halling noted.
Teyla had to concede those were valid points.
"But ultimately," Nalla put in, "I believe I will be able to tell once we get closer to the plant lifeform. I maybe able to start to narrow down which direction it is in."
"Even a vague direction will help us," Halling nodded.
"And," Nalla added, "if it is a Skerti with the plant, it is possible that as we move closer to them, that Si and Emmagan will begin to detect the Skerti as well."
Teyla looked up from the display table to see Nalla's eyes on her. "That is possible."
"And neither of you are detecting anything currently?" Nalla felt the need to ask, her gaze shifting to Si.
Teyla barely had to think to shift into her gift, imagining herself sinking down into the deep cold waters that was how she pictured the place of her gift. In that space she paused, sensing, looking out through the cold watery landscape through which she could detect Wraith...
"No," Si concluded ahead of her, his presence a flutter of distant warmth within the cold depths.
"I do not sense anything either," Teyla agreed as she lifted back out of the sensing space. "But, our range is far more limited than yours."
"But if we work together," Nalla added, "as we physically seek with the sensors, us three combined, could psychically seek out the predator presence."
Teyla had plenty of experience working with other Seekers, knowing that together they were stronger. She and Si in particular worked powerfully together, knew each other's presence well within the cold place of the gift. Together with Nalla's talents, perhaps the three of them could forge themselves into something stronger and more powerful.
"I agree," Si stated, his dark eyes turning to Teyla.
"Agreed," Teyla nodded firmly.
Yet, deep down, something flinched nervously at the thought.
But this was the very reason she knew she had to be part of this mission.
Where her skills were most needed, most valued.
This was exactly why she was keeping her secret quiet, so they would not stop her from doing what needed to be done.
Yet, despite this being exactly what she wanted, she felt a little quiver of doubt and worry.
Worry that she might not be strong enough, focused enough given her own secrets.
Or that Nalla might sense the truth of the growing babe.
But that was not the attitude to have, she had to keep to her resolve. So she forced herself to lift her eyes up from the sensor map and look at Nalla, who was watching her with the faintest of frowns.
"I would like to rest a little beforehand," Teyla stated, "to have something to eat and meditate before we begin," she added, making sure to feel firm on that truth.
Nalla's frown shifted into a smile. "Of course, we must be prepared for the search." She glanced to Si. "And I would like to teach you both a technique I have found that seems to work well against the combined minds of the plant and the predator presence."
"Agreed," Teyla replied as Si nodded.
"Very well," Halling stated. "We need to move quickly once we have halved the Hunt Fleet. We'll stick to sublight engines for now and have every single sensor possible active and searching the asteroids as quickly as possible as we travel along the two paths. If this Skerti is alone and within sensor range, we will need to be ready for a fast, efficient seek and capture mission."
Teyla saw that Jobrill had already begun drawing up an inventory on a screen in front of her.
"I want all Fleet ships to send their sensor statuses to the Sythus and the Sensor Platform Ship," Halling continued. "All inventories are to be updated and shared within five minutes and we will then depart on this next stage. All ships are to remain on high alert, in case this possible Skerti has called in back-up which could arrive at any moment. Given our lack of knowledge of Skerti technology, and the far superior jumping abilities of what little we do know of their tech, we must be prepared to use full force at a moment's notice."
A series of confirmations and agreements came in from all of the Hunt Fleet's Commanders.
"Excellent," Halling replied as silence returned. "We came here to find the Skerti, and it looks like we may just have found exactly what we came all this way for. Let's not miss this opportunity."
Teyla nodded, her eyes on the changing screens across the tactical display table, watching the Hunt Fleet ships delivering their statuses. Feed from the Sensor Platform Ship displayed their running communications with each ship, working to divide the small Fleet into two groups based on sensor capabilities.
If the presence Nalla had detected really was a Skerti, and they could capture it, perhaps even technology with it, then it could be the key to everything.
Including being able to return home.
Back to John.
To be able to tell him of their growing babe.
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Seeal had to admit that she was really starting to enjoy Pelydr.
Outside the Transport's window, she watched the landscape below rapidly disappearing as the Pelydrian Pilot took the ship upwards for the trip to the promised Retreat.
She watched as the Transport passed up through a layer of high clouds to then level off above them. A beautiful view stretched out beyond the window, the clouds a soft fluffy landscape below with perfect white peaks lit in bright sunlight.
It had been wonderfully warm down in the marketplace, the sunshine having seeped a deep comforting warmth into her bones as she and Oneakka had shopped. She couldn't remember the last time she'd enjoyed such a relaxing potter around market stalls. There had been something really freeing about there being no time limit to how long she could shop, no place to get back to, no careful watching for any troublemakers.
No crime…it was still such a strange concept for her, but she hadn't seen anything worrying in the marketplace. No shifty behaviour, no disagreements between people, not even anyone accidentally stepping on someone else's toes.
No thieves, no pickpockets, no potential scum from Dream who might recognise her.
No need to hold her bag close to her side to stop someone taking from it.
Which probably wouldn't have happened anyway with a very obvious Elite Warrior as your shopping companion, but there had still been such a strange feeling to it. Not having to be on alert.
It was kind of nice, though also a little worrying too, because it was clearly something she mustn't get used to. Once she was off Pelydr, full alert status was going to be important again.
Still, it was nice to have a bit of a respite for a couple of days.
Outside the window, the blue curve of the atmosphere above started to disappear as the Pilot angled the nose of the Transport back down towards the fluffy white landscape. She watched as the clouds filled the view again and then parted to reveal a very new landscape below. Long deep valleys between lines of high craggy mountains filled the view in all directions. The highest mountains had small snowy peaks, but she could see that the snow was limited to those very highest of points, while everything below was cast in bright sunshine.
As the Transport lowered, more details began to sharpen and the ship's true speed became evident. Forests flashed by below, interspersed with thin glittering lakes and stretches of open ground covered with tiny dots that looked like large herds of animals.
She glanced down at the purple-coloured electronic pad she had been given when she'd first arrived, which promised to hold everything she could want to know about Pelydr. The animals below would no doubt be listed on there, but she quickly returned her gaze to the constantly changing view below. The Transport was gradually descending lower until the tops of a massive reddish forest seemed only metres below the belly of the ship. She leaned closer to the window, seeing large birds taking flight up off the canopy below, forming a massive moving flock.
"They are wenna birds," the Pilot abruptly reported without her asking, and she looked round to see the Pelydrian smiling at her over his shoulder. "They drink the nectar of the wenna tree flowers."
Had he read her mind or was he just used to people asking about the birds?
"They're pretty big birds to live just off nectar," Seeal found herself asking.
"They also enjoy the fruits and seeds of the wenna and other trees," the Pilot replied as he focused his attention forward again, adjusting the Transport's flightpath slightly. "The flocks move almost constantly over these low-mountain forests, making only temporary nests."
The Transport was now overtaking the large flock and she could see that the front birds were landing back down into the forest canopy, masses of white flowers now visible among the red leaves and branches.
"They flock around the lunar mountain range for the entire season, then move onto the next range, following the warmth of the season as the flowers bloom and fruits ripen," the Pilot continued, clearly rather enjoying the role of tour guide as well as pilot.
Below, the massive forest gave way to long sloping fields of swaying orange grasses and she spotted another massive herd of land animals.
"Those are curly-horned deer, they live half the year up here, moving between the valley lakes and the open grasses, until they reach the local sealine by the end of the season," the Pilot reported.
"Is it just wildlife? No one lives up here?" Seeal asked as she peered down at passing patches of woodland between the grasses, unable to see if any Pelydrians made their homes among the trees.
"People do, but we leave this particular area free for the deer migration and to let the sharp grasses grow freely for them," the Pilot replied. "There are many living areas along the next lake to the right."
Seeal turned to look out the right side of the Transport, past Oneakka's quiet profile as he watched the view out that side of the ship. Out the window beside him, she could see the shimmer of a massive, long lake outlined with stretches of open ground leading to dense forest filling the surrounding valley. Even from up here she could see there were a lot of people moving around down there, congregating along both the water and woodland edges.
"Do Pelydrians have villages? Towns?" She asked.
"There are no set residences," the Pilot replied as he began to angle the ship to the left, away from the populated lake. "Families move as they see fit inside the forests, but usually you have family and friend groups living within the same collection of trees, while many more isolated glens and tree groups have been home to the same families for generations."
Oneakka glanced round, his sharp blue eyes finding hers. "My parents' old friends I'm visiting tomorrow live in a coppice of trees on the side of a mountain near the Retreat," he reported. "Their children moved down to other forests, but they've lived there longer than we've both been alive."
Seeal nodded. "And are there differences between the different areas of the planet?" She asked him rather than the Pilot. "Cultures? Different traditions?"
"Slightly," Oneakka replied, "you can often tell from a Pelydrian's accent if they grew up in the upper or lower hemisphere of the planet."
"Or grew up near water," the Pilot chuckled with a joke that made no sense whatsoever to Seeal, but she saw Oneakka smile at the other male's joke.
"Is Nalla's accent upper or lower hemisphere?" Seeal asked him, since the female Pelydrian was her best frame of reference.
"Upper, but her accent has been heavily influenced by living off-world for so long now," Oneakka replied. "Ambassador Sitayi' accent is a better example of upper hemisphere."
"Is there any difference in wealth or privilege between the two hemispheres?" Seeal asked.
"No," Oneakka shook his head. "There's more off-worlders here in the upper hemisphere just because the Portal is up here, but otherwise no difference. The lower hemisphere is warmer, has more rivers and inhabited coastline. Lots of islands too, all surrounded by fish-filled ocean," he grinned evilly.
She narrowed her eyes at him in warning and then turned away to look out her own window in protest.
She heard him snigger.
Waiting several beats, watching the terrain below, she glanced back to see that he was focused back on the view out of his own window.
He had seemed very relaxed this morning, in his holiday mode she'd guessed, but he had seemed even more…something since they'd arrived on Pelydr.
He'd always seemed a male who was comfortable in his own skin, confident in who he was and uncaring about what others thought, but there was always that protective shell around him. She'd seen moments of that defensive barrier cracking open a little before, when he'd talked about his people or when he'd been struggling during his recovery. But, this felt different today.
He seemed different.
But she wasn't quite sure in what way other than he appeared very calm and relaxed. But, there was something…
She frowned at his turned profile, struggling to find a word to describe what her instincts and long years of people observation had taught her.
What was very clear was that he was purposefully being nice to her, working his apology with annoying efficiency and effectiveness. So maybe it was just something to do with that, a sort of meekness in him she'd not seen before…no, there was nothing 'meek' about Oneakka. But there was definitely something…softer about him, something missing that was normally there.
Or maybe it had absolutely nothing to do with her and his apology and this was just how he was on Pelydr anyway. She hadn't missed the fact that no one here referred to him by his usual 'Honoured Elite' title – the Seer Sitayi having been the single exception. Everywhere she'd seen him or any other Elite go, they were very purposefully and carefully called "Honoured Elite", but here, Oneakka was the "Son of Ugun". She guessed it was how Pelydrians honoured him and his lost people, but she had to wonder about that.
In fact, one thought had played on her mind since Oneakka had told her about how things apparently worked on a planet where people could hear your thoughts and see the future. It had then niggled further at her as she'd noticed that every single Pelydrian in the marketplace – whether he'd interacted with them or not – had clearly recognised Oneakka and had smiled at him, even if he hadn't been looking in their direction. Admittedly, Oneakka was pretty darn recognisable and no doubt famously known on Pelydr given he was the last "Son of Ugun", but she hadn't read the smiles as them all just simply noticing who he was, so much as seeming honestly pleased to see him.
They all liked him.
But she had to wonder why, because there had been a strange vibe to it. Friendly, yes, and compassionate, but something else. Something that was complex and difficult to read, especially on the notoriously difficult to read Pelydrians.
She had some theories though, well one theory really, and she didn't like it.
Because on a planet where many of their population could literally 'see' the future, surely they must have known what would befall Ugun before it had happened. Had known that he would be the last of his people…which meant that they hadn't warned Ugun.
Hadn't tried to save any of his people.
But they smiled when they saw him…was that from relief that at least he had survived? Or was it laced with their own guilty-conscience?
They gave him two weeks free stay in an isolated Retreat every year, and they performed that greeting ceremony when he'd arrived, each year giving him a gift to honour the old trade agreement between Ugun and Pelydr…and to soothe their guilt?
Knowing that they could have saved his heartbreak.
Which really angered her, if it was true.
Made her look away from the strong, handsome warrior who had had pretty much everything taken from him.
Who was so obviously relaxed and calm here on a planet that had potentially betrayed him and his people.
Or maybe she was wrong, she considered as she watched the rising terrain below the Transport, grasses having given away to dense patches of shrubbery and small groups of trees.
Maybe seeing the future wasn't so simple, as Sitayi had implied. Maybe they hadn't known when the Wraith would arrive on Ugun? Maybe it had been a situation like had happened with Halling on the Rogue Hive, where the future hadn't been set? Maybe they hadn't known everyone on Ugun would be killed.
Or maybe those who saw the future didn't bother to try to change it, because they believed it couldn't be changed…but Sitayi hadn't thought that, and her actions had helped save Halling…
Seeal pursed her lips tightly, holding in the impulsive urge to blurt out her questions and theory to Oneakka.
But that would be cruel, wouldn't it?
Plus, it wasn't like he wouldn't have thought of this already, right?
The male was dangerously intelligent most of the time, and maybe he'd already had this very discussion with the people here. Maybe that was even why he had this holiday every year, something they'd openly given to him as compensation …as if anything could compensate for what had happened!
She winced at the thought and glanced round to Oneakka again, to see that he was still focused on the view outside, seemingly enjoying the trip that he had surely seen numerous times before. All relaxed and calm.
In fact, if it weren't for the tattoos on the right side of his face, there wasn't anything about him today that showed he was an Elite Warrior. Even his regained muscle wasn't the big showy thick muscle that some untrained eye might think was what all Elite Warriors looked like; no, Elite had highly used, streamlined muscle, or 'fighting muscle' as they'd used to call in the pit fights, which made them strong, but quick. There'd always been pit fighters who had piled on thick bulging muscle in an attempt to look dangerous and attract more bets, but that kind of heavy weight had been a distinct disadvantage in the fast paced, bare knuckle violence of the pits.
No, anyone seeing Oneakka wandering in the marketplace without seeing his tattoos might have been forgiven to think he was just a strong male, out shopping in the sunshine. Not one of the most deadliest fighters she'd ever met, and she'd met her fair share. But, she'd learnt long ago not to trust the persona that people wore. Instead, you looked for the way their body and expressions told you the actual truth of who they were, because the truth always leaks out of people in ways they are rarely able to control. The lies that seem fine to the mind, make the body sweat, and the fear the mind thinks it's controlling just bleeds out in their every gesture and glance.
But here and now, Oneakka looked like a happy and contented male, which were two emotions she'd never naturally associated with him before.
Oneakka glanced round, so she switched her gaze to the window past him. He reached down to their collection of bags on the ship's floor between them, clearly recognising that the Transport was almost ready to land. She dropped her attention quickly to see that he'd already gotten hold of the handle of the heavy vegetable-filled net bag and he pulled it up against his left lower leg, a silent point to her that again she wasn't going to get to carry that bag. She glared up at him, but he looked away, though not before she spied an amused smile on his face.
Happy and relaxed on his two weeks away from war and responsibility.
It made sense that he would be different here. That he could drop some of his usual protective shield.
It did make logical, psychological sense.
She just…something still niggled at her though.
It wasn't like it was worrying, it just felt different, and she was getting a little fed up with that theme with him of late. Gone were the days that he'd used to make clear sense to her. Instead in the last few weeks, he'd become unpredictable, going from periods of being tetchy for no obvious reason and picking arguments, to then turn around and sit as a worried, protective guard outside that cold cabinet she'd sat in for the temperature experiments. And he'd been there on Saoka's planet, had literally carried her safely home.
And now, he was different again.
Looking all calm and handsome while she felt unnerved and uncertain.
He glanced round again, so she looked quickly down to pick up the remaining bags that he deemed acceptable for her to carry. She picked up the handle of the net bag holding the different teas they'd bought – for which he'd paid for using his Beacon - and then the one holding the bags of grains – which she'd made sure to pay for.
Her annoyingly light bags arranged, she looked back to her window to see the tops of trees immediately outside sliding upwards, the ship already lowering to the ground.
The Transport settled with a light shudder.
"Welcome to the Lunar Mountain Retreat," the Pilot declared as he turned in his seat to smile at them. Well, at her, because Oneakka already had the side door open and was climbing out.
"Thank you," she replied to the Pilot for the both of them.
"A Transport can be called at any time from the main communication pad at the Retreat," the Pilot smiled, as Oneakka reached back into the Transport from outside and pulled out the vegetable net bag and his large book-crammed bag. "For trips anywhere you want across the planet," the Pilot continued. "I do recommend the music festival next week as well."
"Oh, I'm only here for a couple of days," Seeal replied as she shuffled towards the side door and to where Oneakka was reaching in towards her.
She tightly clutched her designated net bags. "I've got them," she insisted as she got to the open door. He'd only use the excuse to carry the bags the rest of the way if she relinquished them.
"Watch your ankle as you step down," Oneakka warned as he stepped away, but was obviously going to hover to watch her climb down out of the ship.
She therefore purposefully took her time, setting her somewhat sore foot on the outside lip step of the Transport and then dropped down the small distance onto her strong leg. Well, it was the strongest ankle today, but both her legs and backside were seriously aching after yesterday. The walk to and around the marketplace had helped stretch out her overworked legs, but having sat in the Transport for…she had no idea how long the trip had taken…anyway, they had tensed up a bit now, but she quickly moved to a safe distance from the Transport while Oneakka shut the side door.
There was a waist-high wooden fence encircling the Transport's landing spot, so she set the net bags down by the fence and adjusted her bag's strap over her shoulder, while subtly shaking out her tight legs. The air stirred up dried leaves around her as the Transport began to ascend up from the ground. Partly closing her eyes against the rush of air, she watched the Transport bank away, flying off into the bright blue sky.
Being back out in the warm sunshine felt wonderful against her face as she turned, taking in her surroundings, since she'd not been paying attention during the last part of the journey here.
The Transport parking spot was set in the middle of a small grassy lawn, surrounded on all sides with reddish-green trees. She could hear the delicate twitter of small birds from the branches and the gentle rustle of the leaves moving in the slight breeze. Beyond the trees ahead of her, the top of the massive mountain rose up high, patches of grass and reddish shrubbery in rolling patches visible across the craggy rising height, the sunlight shining brightly over everything. On one side of the rise, she could see what looked like large groups of trailing flowers clinging to the smallest rocky outcrops, and, somewhere far in the distance, she was pretty sure she could hear the sound of a waterfall.
Everything looked so natural and beautiful, and the temperature felt warmer up here compared to the marketplace.
She closed her eyes for a moment, drinking in the glorious sun, and took a deep breath of what felt like extraordinarily clean, fresh-tasting air.
She swore she could feel her sore muscles and aching ankle easing just from the good tasting air and warmth on her.
She blinked open her eyes to the peak of the mountain and the blue sky around it.
Well, time to get on, she reached down and picked up the tea and grains net bags and turned, to find Oneakka leaning on the fence near an open gate out of the fenced off parking spot, an amused 'I'm waiting' smile on his face.
"Sorry," she hurried towards him. "Are you sure there isn't some sort of drug in the air on this planet?"
"No drugged air," he assured her with a smile as he pushed away from the fence. "It's the clean air and the knowing that nothing bad is going to happen here."
She still couldn't quite get her head around that fact, because surely random natural events still happened here on Pelydr, but she put that out of her mind as she followed Oneakka through the open gate and onto a worn path that ran across the lawn towards a gap in the treeline ahead.
"I said you'd like it here," he declared over his shoulder, sounding rather smug about it.
She paused to close the gate behind her, presumably there to stop wildlife wandering into the area a Transport might land on them. "You can't take credit for Pelydr being relaxing," she pointed out as she started along the path after him.
"I can take credit for inviting you here," he retaliated, looking at her over his shoulder, the tattooed and scarred side of his face showing.
"I'm the one who took up the offer," she replied as the path approached the gap in the treeline.
"Only because I offered it," he bantered back.
"Only because I was available to invite."
She thought she heard him chuckle, but there was no further comment, which meant she'd won that round. He really was making an effort with his apology holiday to let her win a sparring session so easily.
As they followed the path through the gap between the trees, she peered in between the spaced trunks to see small birds flittering from between the branches. Other than their little calls, it was very noticeably quiet here, even the distant sound of the waterfall was now cut away by the screen of trees. Instead, there was just the faint stirring of the warm air and the crunch of the ground under her and Oneakka's sandals.
"Here we are," Oneakka announced as they emerged out from the trees, and he started following the path to the right. "The cabins start here," he indicated up ahead.
She peered past him to see a line of simple wooden buildings stood in a line on the right side of the path, the screen of trees behind them. Oneakka had this morning described the cabins to be more like "huts" and it was reasonable description. Each cabin was a simple rectangular box, looking barely big enough to hold one small room, and was set a couple of metres up off the ground with a set of wooden steps running up to the front. She couldn't see any windows to the rectangular buildings, but she could see that their front doors stood open, facing the path. Still, they looked very well made, with nice little pointed roofs which all supported a small bank of solar-capture power cells, and there were flowerbeds planted in the open spaces between the huts.
"As I said," Oneakka stated as he led the way towards the first 'cabin' along the path, "they're basic, but comfortable."
As they reached level with the first hut, she saw that there was a small path leading off the main path, which led straight to the foot of the steps up into the cabin.
"There's a water tap at the bottom of the steps on the left," Oneakka explained as she padded up the short path, curious to see inside the little hut, "and there are solar-powered lights inside, and portable lanterns as well."
As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she noticed that the steps up to the hut's open door were all a very good size, suggesting that they were perhaps also good sitting places. She climbed up a few of the steps until she could see through the open door into the cabin.
As she'd predicted, there was only one small room inside, and she couldn't see any obvious furniture. Instead, there was a thin mattress mat lying directly on the cabin floor, in the centre of which were stacked several pillows and a rolled up duvet. She moved up the last few steps so she could peer further into the room, and spotted a folded up chair and small table leaning against the inside wall. And, as she suspected, there were no windows, though given no one on Pelydr was going to sneak up on you in the night to steal anything, she guessed there didn't need to be a way to look out. She peered up at the open door and noticed that the roof slightly overhung the top of the stairs to provide some cover when the door was open. It was one big window, she guessed, letting in enough light.
"Where do you put your clothes?" She asked as she peered back inside again.
"There's a shelf on the inside wall," Oneakka replied from the bottom of the steps behind her. "But, as there's five cabins, I store most of my stuff in another hut."
She leaned back out of the hut's door and glanced along the path to the left, along which the other four huts were spaced. He was right that it was basic, but it was also nice and simple, and the wood seemed to be holding the sun's warmth nicely.
"There's five huts, so we could have two each and use the fifth for general storage," Oneakka suggested as she headed back down the steps towards him. "Pick whichever huts you want."
She stepped down off the stairs and smiled at him, amused at the obvious politeness of his ongoing apology routine. "Which one do you normally have?" She asked.
"I usually sleep in the second one in from the far end of the path, and then use the middle hut for storage," he reported as they headed back to and along the main path.
"I'll take this one then," she decided pointing to the next hut they were now approaching. It was next to the middle hut that he used for storage and it meant that there was still one cabin at the end between her hut and the exit out of the Retreat.
Pelydr might be safe, but she still didn't like the idea of sleeping in an entirely enclosed box that was on the end, in the most exposed position.
"Good choice," Oneakka commented with a small smile as if he'd understood her reasoning.
They reached what was now 'her' cabin, so she headed quickly up the steps and peered into her space – which looked identical to the last hut – and set her bag down inside. Heading back down the steps, she silently reminded herself that it was okay to leave her things here unattended on Pelydr.
"No animals are going to find their way into the huts are they?" She checked as she reached ground level again and headed back to his side on the main path.
"I've never seen any within the Retreat," Oneakka replied. "Though I think it may be part of the reason why the huts are lifted up off the ground." She nodded at that reasoning. "That and the view," he added as he turned and pointed off to the left.
She glanced in the direction he was pointing…to see the most stunning view. How has she missed that?!
Opposite the cabins, on the left side of the path, there was a wide open grassy lawn that sloped down and away, only to abruptly seemingly stop a hundred metres away, leaving nothing but a vast panoramic view of the landscape below. She had gathered that the Retreat was partway up the mountain, who's peak towered over them, but she'd not realised how high up they were. Below, a vast unobstructed landscape filled everything beyond the edge of the Retreat space, almost like a painted picture it was so beautiful. A wide long valley stretched away into the distance below, a beautiful sparkling narrow lake nestled within its wandering length, outlined on both sides with every terrain she could imagine. There were warm-coloured scrublands, small fields of brightly coloured flowers, and rolling grasses rising up into the foothills of the massive mountain range outlining both sides of the valley. The mountains themselves rose up into massive series of peaks, edged with craggy plains and dense forest up to their snow-caps. Despite how far away they were, the mountains were so breathtakingly immense that they somehow felt closer, and the air was so clear that she could actually make out tiny dark dots circling the closest peak, presumably large birds drifting in the warm updrafts as they looked for prey in the brushland below the snowline.
"Wow!" She couldn't stop herself from gasping as she took in the view.
She had seen beautiful places in her travels, though mostly just at a quick glance as she carried on with a mission or kept her face out of sight, but this view was the most stunning thing she'd ever seen. It was like someone had made sure that every type of beautiful scenery was all contained within one complete vista.
Which, she realised as she shut her gaping mouth, would be exactly why this Retreat had obviously been put here. And why all five of the cabins all faced in the same direction, so you could see the view from your hut, even sleep with the door open to see the mountains…
"Good, isn't it," Oneakka stated as he headed off the path, leading the way over the lawn towards the view. "This is the main area of the Retreat."
She started after him, stepping onto the lush grass that crunched slightly under her sandals.
"To the right," Oneakka began the tour, "is a table to sit and eat."
She had to pull her eyes off the view ahead of them to look to the right, spotting a flattened area of the lawn with a large wooden table and benches.
And, she noticed, there were a series of shoulder-high dead trees flanking the lawn side of the cabin path. They had been trimmed down to just a few larger branches, creating the appearance of an old dry tree skeleton, clearly having been carved into a specific shape. She guessed they were some sort of decorative sculpture?
"On the left," Oneakka's voice drew her attention back round to the tour. "Is the workout area."
She dutifully looked to the left to see the tops of metal frames coming into view, a sandy rectangle at their feet. The metal bars were painted in various bright colours, implying it was geared towards being a play area, but the height and strength of some of the frames showed that they had clearly been designed for even a large male to use.
"You put that in?" She asked, switching her attention back to Oneakka's wide shoulders ahead of her.
"No," he replied as they continued on down the gentle rolling slope.
"They put it in for you?" She pressed.
He glanced at her over his shoulder, facial tattoos, scars and a bright blue eye appearing into view. "Possibly," he conceded with a smile and looked away. "All of this area belongs to the Retreat space, from the outlining treeline on the left, behind the cabins and then beyond the treeline to the right. But the whole area is open to explore, there's no restriction on where you can go."
She nodded, her eyes constantly straying back to the panoramic vista ahead of them, the edge of the Retreat now fast approaching, where grass gave way to the unobstructed glorious view.
"Here," Oneakka turned to the right, now leading the way along the front of the view, "is my favourite spot."
She pulled her gaze away from the scenery with interest at that comment, to see a long line of seats built into the slope, forming a long sofa that looked directly out over the view. By her guess, the solid sofa could probably sit about ten people, and provided an entirely unobstructed vantagepoint of the landscape.
"I can see why," she said with feeling.
"The cushions are in the big drawers under the seats," Oneakka pointed towards the base of the built-in sofa as they walked alongside it. "I usually just keep the cushions out all the time when I'm here, just put them away when I know there's rain on the way."
She nodded as she kept following him towards the far end of the sofa, where a bank rose up out of the sofa's cut into the slope.
"Ankle okay?" Oneakka asked as he led the way up the short grassy bank.
"Yes, yes," she dismissed the overprotectiveness as she followed him up the well-worn path up the bank, to discover that the ground dropped away again on the other side into a long trench cut down into and stretching back up the slope. The floor of the trench was clean polished light stone, outlined on one side with a long line of waist high metal hoods and the other side a long bench with built-in seating.
"This is the kitchen," Oneakka explained as he started down some steps down into the trench. "There's cupboards, stove, oven, and chilled cabinet all built-in," he explained as he set down the vegetable net bag on the bench and then started lifting the metal hoods opposite, lifting them up and back to reveal a long worktop.
She headed down the short flight of steps into the open-air kitchen, watching as Oneakka worked his way up the kitchen trench, lifting more of the hoods to reveal more of the amenities.
"Sink," Oneakka reported as he pushed back a hood, revealing said large sink with two taps. "This tap and hose here," he pointed to a third tap beside the sink, "has filtered drinking water and this," he paused to reach down and open a cupboard below the sink. He pulled out an electric-powered kettle. "Is your most important equipment."
She had to grin at that as she set the bags of tea and grains down on an open section of worktop. "Very important," she confirmed.
He opened the kettle, filled it from the drinking tap and then fitted it into a dark stand, a small green light flickering to life.
"Solar powered?" She guessed as she spotted the capture cells on the lifted metal hoods that had covered the kitchen.
"Yes," he confirmed. "The water comes from a local underground spring. The pantry is behind you," he indicated back down the kitchen trench.
She turned and saw that there was indeed a door set into the side of the trench by the steps they had entered by. She headed towards it as she heard Oneakka opening another cupboard. The pantry door had no lock on it, because of course this was Pelydr, and as she opened it, a series of lights came to life inside revealing two steps down into what amounted to a small bunker rather than a 'pantry'. Shelving units filled all sides of the room, holding boxes, jars, tins and large bins of labelled food items. With just a cursory glance she could see there were various jams, pickles, packets of dehydrated food, various types of flour, bottles of various drinks - including alcohol - and an entire shelf dedicated to candles of various colours and sizes.
Shocked, she leaned back out of the pantry and looked at Oneakka. "When you said it was well stocked with basics, I thought you meant like a couple of jars of preserved fruit and a bag of flour."
Oneakka grinned as he set two ceramic mugs down by the kettle.
"I've stayed in space stations with fewer basics," she muttered as she closed the pantry and peered down the end of the kitchen. There cabinets gave way to the end of the slope before the view began, though she noticed that the section of grass there was particularly luscious.
"I take it the sink drains off underground to feed the lawn?" She guessed as she headed back towards Oneakka.
"And the trees, yes," he confirmed. "As does the washing facilities, which is our next stop," he declared as he turned and started heading away up the kitchen trench.
Glancing at the glowing kettle, she followed him, the end of the trench rising up slightly to emerge up onto a path that ran ahead, which she could see was going to converge with the first path that lined the cabins. They'd walked a big circle then, the kitchen behind her, the eating and sitting areas on the slope in the middle, Oneakka's workout space at the far end, and the huts in a line at the back of the Retreat space.
"As I told you this morning," Oneakka reported as he led her up the path, "you have to use Pelydrian soaps and cleaning products here. Everything is supplied though, so you don't need to worry about anything." He reached the junction of the hut and kitchen paths, but she could now see that there was a third path that headed off to the left towards a gap in the treeline.
"The toilets and shower facilities are that way," Oneakka indicated the new path. "But, I'll just put by bag in my cabin," he added as he took the righthand path and strode towards the hut that was his usual pick. Stood in the sunshine waiting for him, she noticed that there was another one of the dead tree sculptures here, stood randomly in the lawn by the junction of the paths.
"Theres one outside each hut," Oneakka abruptly stated, drawing her attention away from the sculpture to find him already heading back towards her. "They're towel-trees," he indicated the sculpture.
"Ohhh," she looked at the carved tree with more understanding now. "To hang up towels to dry in the sun." The former tree's few remaining limbs were long enough for you to hang even a wide towel along to dry, and the wood would absorb the sun's warmth, speeding up the process.
"Exactly. Now," he said as he reached her and the towel-tree, "the key thing is to remember to pick up your towel from it on your way to use the showers."
She frowned at that point. Of course you would take your towel if you were going to wash. "Okay," she decided was a safe answer to her Elite tour guide.
"The washing facilities are this way," he started forward along the new path, leading her towards the gap in the treeline that encircled the Retreat.
"Are there other Retreats nearby?" She checked.
"This is the only one on this side of this mountain," he confirmed as the path led through the gap in the trees, only to quickly emerge back out in open air, the trees having been only a thin screen between the two spaces of the Retreat.
This new space was another area of sloping grass, with a path that ran down the gentle slope ahead, to then junction off towards either a high-fenced area to the left or continued on towards the end of the small field.
"The toilet facilities are in that hut over there," Oneakka pointed towards where she could now see a simple, wide hut stood among trees at the end of the field. There were two doors into the hut, spaced apart to suggest the building had two rooms. "There are two bathrooms inside, each with a toilet and a large sink, and all the toiletries you could need are supplied in there. Here though," he said as they took the left hand path towards the fenced area, "we have the shower facilities."
She frowned at the fence ahead of them. "Out in the open?"
"The floor is lower inside, so the fence is higher than it looks from out here, and the line of trees blocks it completely from the main Retreat area," he reported as he led the way up towards the shower 'facilities'.
As they reached the fence, she realised that it had a blind entrance, a separate section of fence enclosing a space in which you presumably undressed before heading into the main shower area. Oneakka led the way into it.
"There are two underground washing machines for clothes," he reported. "One is out near the toilets and the other is in here, so you can put your clothes straight into it before going into the shower."
Inside the enclosed 'changing area', there was a wooden bench and the top of what was clearly the washing machine set into the base of one section of fence. Oneakka opened it up to reveal that the machine went right down into the ground.
"You put your clothes in here," he pointed down into the dark container inside, "then just close it and the controls are here," he indicated a panel above the door. "Just select the setting you want and it automatically adjusts how much cleanser to add to it."
"And how is it powered?" She asked, rather amused at the domestic turn this tour had taken, especially considering that her tour guide was an Elite Warrior.
"The solar-cells are on top of the shower units," he answered.
"Okay," she leaned out of the changing area into the shower space to find that it was larger inside than she'd expected. You could probably shower twenty people in here! The floor was sloped down towards two drains in the floor, and there were four shower heads set under small little roofs, on top of which were presumably the solar-cells. And she could see that Oneakka was right, the fence was much higher inside the shower area with the centre lower to drain the water; you could probably only see the top of people's heads in here from the path outside, though she still made a mental note not to walk along the nearby path if Oneakka was showering in here.
"The machine also dries the clothes," Oneakka continued his tour, heading out of the shower's changing area. She hurried to follow him out of the fenced off space, her legs and ankle complaining a little.
Oneakka moved round behind the fence to where there was a door set into the low rise. He opened it to reveal a large cupboard inside, it's shelves appearing to have little conveyor belts on them.
"The clothes will appear here, ready to collect and wear right away," he explained.
"How long does it all take?" She asked peering inside.
"Usually within a couple of hours," he replied.
"What if it stops working?" She asked, as she couldn't see any controls of any kind inside.
"It's Pelydr, it won't stop working."
She straightened up from peering inside the drying room. "Because they'll know it will break so they send someone out ahead of time?"
He nodded, clearly controlling a smile.
"But if they repair it, how do they know it would have broken?"
"It's Pelydr," he shrugged as he closed the drying room door.
"Well Pelydr doesn't make sense," she told him.
He didn't hide his grin this time as he straightened and turned to face her. "That concludes orientation," he stated like he'd just given a military briefing rather than touring her around a relaxing retreat. "Questions?" He asked a little challengingly, implying he felt he had covered everything.
She had to come up with at least one question…
"Are there sheets in the hut for the mattress and duvet?"
"All in the hut under the folded duvet and pillows," he replied.
"What about blankets?" She asked, pleased to have another question.
"Also with the sheets. You're worried you're going to get cold?" He asked amused.
"You know I like to be warm," she countered quickly.
He blinked. It was an odd moment, almost like it had been a twitch rather than just a natural blink, like there had been something to it. She frowned at him, unsure what she'd just seen.
"A Glisi afraid of being cold," he scoffed as he turned to lead the way back to the path.
"I'm not afraid of being cold," she argued as she hurried to catch up with him, her ankle grumbling at her. "I just don't like the cold."
"That you can barely feel," he responded as she caught up with him. The path was just about wide enough for her to walk at his side on the way back, which was better than trailing along behind him anymore.
"That's very different to being afraid of the cold," she pointed out.
"No," he said as they joined the path back towards the main part of the Retreat, "you're just afraid of fish," he teased.
She kept her attention forward, not rising to that obvious bait, and she heard him snigger, incorrectly thinking he'd won that round.
The backs of her legs felt tight and sore as they walked up the slope, the angle pulling at her overworked hamstrings. In fact, she was feeling a bit tired now and could do with sitting down, maybe have some tea out of one of those mugs he'd gotten out in the kitchen. He'd said this was a good place to recover and she could get that now; the warmth, the clean air and the nice Retreat space, the gentle rustle of trees and the twitter of birds in the background…she could actually feel her body decompressing.
"So what do you think of the Retreat?" He asked.
"It's beautiful," she replied honestly. "Nice, secluded location with a breath-taking view, food facilities, clean water literally pumped straight to the cabin door," she gestured to where the huts were appearing through the gap in the trees ahead.
"I told you that you'd like it here," he noted smugly.
"I never said I wouldn't like it here," she argued back, which wasn't all that logical of an answer, but her ankle was really protesting now.
In fact, she was pretty sure he was walking slower than normal again, silently setting the pace to help her ankle. Which felt a little embarrassing, but she ignored the hit to her pride. She was here to recover and to accept his apology gift of this stay. Besides, they were at the top of the slope now anyway, moving out from the screen of trees back into the grassy lawns of the Retreat.
"I think I need to go change into some cooler clothes," she decided as they took the turning to the huts.
"I need to unpack as well, set up my library in the middle hut," he joked gesturing towards the third hut a short way up along the path. "Meet you in the kitchen for tea and admiring the view?" He suggested.
She smiled at the invitation, as if he'd read her mind. "Sounds good," she agreed.
"Take your time, Raven," he added, as he turned down the little side path to his chosen hut. "There's nowhere we need to be."
She gave him a smile and nod, and then focused forward as she tried not to limp too much down the path towards her hut.
As she walked, she found herself instantly looking towards the majestic view to the right, and swore she could feel something extra ease inside her.
There was no one up here but her and Oneakka. No scum, no Wraith, no Recruits, not even another living person in sight. Just the sounds of nature, the warm sun on her face, and the view.
As apologies went, this really was the best she'd ever received.
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TBC