AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You do too now.” Fal’ran kicked him lightly. “You did yesterday. At dinner.”
“I slipped up.” Patrick wrinkled his nose but didn’t deny it. Dominic Turner’s face on a screen was a disturbingly common sight in the research center, and Patrick had become disturbingly comfortable with it.
“There they are.”
Patrick yanked his head up. Two familiar figures trudged up and over the ridge beyond the research station gate. “They don’t look injured.”
“No,” Fal’ran chuckled and sipped his tea. “But they look mad.”
Patrick cocked his head as Sazahk and Bar’in drew closer. “Why do you say that?”
“Because Sazahk’s in front.” Fal’ran smirked around the rim of his mug. “You’re gonna get an earful about something.”
“Great,” Patrick sighed. He drained the rest of his tea and headed back inside.
Dominic Turner’s face dominated half the screen in their debriefing room. The other half of the screen displayed an x-ray of a klah’eel’s head; Tar’s head, judging by the chipped tusk. Tar himself sat in front of the screen, frowning hard at the image. Patrick saw nothing wrong with it, but he didn’t have any medical training. Sazahk and Dom didn’t either, but that hadn’t stopped them from continuing to investigate Tar’s lack of smell. Dominic Turner’s persistence in helping Tar for no apparent benefit to himself had gone a long way toward turning him into “Dom” in Patrick’s mind.
“Are they back?” Dom minimized the image of the x-ray when Patrick walked into the room.
“They’re back.” Fal’ran sank into a chair as footsteps pounded down the hall toward them. “Prepare yourselves.”
Sazahk stormed into the debriefing room in a swirl of dust and purple. “I need to go farther.”
“We did go farther!” Bar’in raced in two steps behind.
Patrick swept his eyes over them. He’d been right. They were uninjured. But so had Fal’ran. They were furious.
“Not far enough.” Sazahk threw his bag onto the table, his whole face purple. “Three weeks. Two excursions. Barely three days long. We haven’t done more than scout the perimeter. The Dead Zone is vast.” Sazahk threw his arms wide. “I’ll never learn anything about anywhere at this rate, much less reach a conclusion on habitability for an alien species.”
“We don’t have a conclusion on habitability for your species yet.” Fal’ran sat forward. “Until Dom’s test kits get here, we can’t know how long it’s even safe to be out there. There must be a reason nothing’s alive beyond those gates.”
Bar’in’s face scrunched. “Oh, there’s something alive.”
“Exactly!” Sazahk pointed at Bar’in. “There is. We saw a creature. A wild animal. But it was impossible to conjecture species at our distance and someone wouldn’t allow me to get any closer.”
“Of course, I wouldn’t.” Bar’in threw his hands up. “Not to random monsters in a wasteland and not to freaky smelling puddles of water.”
“I have to get close to things to study—”
“Hold up,” Dom interrupted. “You saw an animal out there?”
“Yes,” Sazahk rounded on the screen, his eyes huge and his purple skin transforming into green. “An animal. Fauna. In the Dead Zone. And I thought moss was an incredible discovery. But at least I got a sample of the moss.” Green returned to purple in an instant as Sazahk swung back around. “Patrick, I can’t—”
“I get it.” Patrick held up a hand. “I get it. You’re not wrong.”
Bar’in slumped. “Look, I can escort him through the seediest city slums in the sector and onto an alien ship and all sorts of shit like that, but I’m not qualified for wilderness adventuring.”
“I understand.” Patrick put his hand on Bar’in’s shoulder. He addressed Sazahk before Sazahk continued his argument. “And I understand you need to be empowered to take more risks. The sector needs you to be successful here. I don’t want to hold you back.”
Sazahk’s purple receded, and his puffed-up fury deflated. “Thank you.”
“I’ll figure something out.” Patrick picked up Sazahk’s bag and pushed it into his hands. “We’ll debrief the trip later.” He steered Bar’in and Sazahk toward the door. “You both cool down and get some rest.”
They shuffled to the door, the weight of their responsibilities obvious on their shoulders. Tar followed, taking Bar’in’s bag and trying to take Sazahk’s, but Sazahk dodged the helping hand. They were all doing their best and Patrick wasn’t setting them up for success. He needed to find a solution.
“You want help analyzing your samples?” Bar’in asked Sazahk as they left the room.
“Yes, please. Take your shower first, though. You hate when your hair’s dirty.”
