He awoke and listened in the darkness. The sound repeated, softly, urgently. Morgan Martin turned to his right, and watched Bess sleep. For a minute there was near silence, only the sound of her breathing filled the room. Then quietly, he pushed back the blankets, sat up and swung his left leg off the bed with practiced care. He adjusted the angle of the brace slightly. It was in its fifth generation now, refined each time to better suit his mobility. Despite three surgeries, he still needed the extra support that the brace provided.

Morgan grabbed the crutches that leaned against the wall and stood carefully. He took a moment to adjust his weight and as quietly as possible he moved out of the small room and into the narrow, short corridor. He had worked hard to move soundlessly on the cumbersome crutches. When he first started using them, he used to pound resoundingly through the metal structure, but now he made hardly a sound. For once, he made it down the hallway without catching the crutches into the tight spaces created by the building struts

Morgan first moved to the room on the far end of the small building. The electronics bay lit the room with a constant glow. He leaned over the command center and pulled the GEAR off the back of the chair and put it on. The chair moved slightly when he did this, so Morgan moved it back into its previous position. The wheeled office chair was one of the few items to survive the destruction of the CargoPods, and Morgan prized it. He tapped on the keyboard a few times, checking to see if anything had been recorded. Nothing new was noted. He considered starting another scan when that sound repeated. He took off the GEAR and put it back on the chair, then hobbled back to the corridor.

Half way to their bedroom, Morgan stopped at the only other opening and entered. A small LumaLite palely lit the room. He moved to the crate in the center of the room with great care. When he looked into it, he smiled. Amelia Margaret smiled back.

"What are you doing up so early?" he whispered as he picked up the baby and held her close to him. "Your mommy is sleeping. You can't be hungry already." The baby gurgled happily and grabbed at her father's long hair. "Maybe you were just bored, huh?" He leaned against the wall of the room and held the baby up to his face. She looked so much like Bess, he could hardly see any of himself in her. She had Bess' hair, ears, chin, and eyes. She was long though, in the 95th percentile for her age (that's what Julia had said). 95, now that's pretty impressive. "You go right ahead and take after your mother. You can be tall like me, but that's all." Amelia still smiled and blew bubbles at him. "That's a big smile for Daddy. Or is it just gas?" He placed her on his shoulder and thumped her back. "Yeah, gas."

She started making that sound again, that 'feed me now' sound. "Okay, okay, hang on." He pulled a sling off a hook on the wall and strung it around his neck and shoulder, and then placed Amelia in it. The baby quieted down immediately once he had her tightly against himself. "Smart kid," he thought, "She knows that she's headed to her mom." He grabbed his crutches again and headed back to the bedroom.

He slowly made his way back into the bedroom and stood beside the bed, looking down at his sleeping wife. He felt a surge of amazement. How could he be so lucky as to have Bess for a wife and Amelia for a child? Could anything be more wonderful? Amelia made a soft sound and Bess rolled over and looked up at him.

"She's hungry," Morgan said.

"Morgan," Bess said and sighed, "Was she even awake this time?" She reached up to take the baby out of the sling and cradled the child to her, "Good morning Amy-Maggie! Such a pretty baby; such a pretty baby." she cooed. "You like waking your mommy and daddy, don't you?"

"She was up. She was hungry and was asking to be fed."

Bess shook her head and prepared to nurse the child. "Morgan, we have to let her cry sometimes."

"Amelia will never have reason to cry," Morgan stated.

Bess smiled. "You are spoiling her. Everyone will think she's a spoiled brat."

"Everyone will love her, just like you." He kissed Bess on the forehead. "I think I'll get in a few scans before breakfast."

"I don't want you hooked up to that GEAR all day again, honey. The sun's not even up yet."

"Yeah well, that means no one will come around to bother me and maybe I can get some work done," he said and headed out of the room. "Besides, I have a feeling that today is going to be the big day!"

"Morgan, I mean it," Bess said sternly, and then returned her attention to their child.

Morgan just shrugged. He paused in the doorway and glanced back at his wife and daughter. How could he be so damned lucky, he thought as he headed back to the electronics bay of the CommDish.

* * * *

Baines leaned against the outside wall of the CommDish and rubbed his hands together. It would be light soon, but for now he stood alone in the light of the moons. There was nothing lonelier than being on night watch. He was probably the only human being awake on the whole planet. The penal colonists and others to the east, if any still existed, certainly slept late.

It was hard to believe that winter was coming again. Even harder to believe that today marked their first anniversary at Roanoke Colony. At least the autumn rains were over. The weather had not been as terrible as the previous year in the valley, and thankfully, there had been no insect invasion, but they were all glad when the rains ended. Yale had said that the winters should stay mild at this location, and their last winter had proved his point. The temperatures dropped below freezing only twice last year, a welcome change to their WinterCamp in the mountains. And of course, the String of Pearls protected them from the harsh surf of winter. He sighed and thought about summer. For a few minutes he reveled in the memory of hot sandy beaches and mild breezes blowing through the compound. He remembered his 'perfect spot' on the dunes and the long days, where it hardly mattered that their clothing had been worn threadbare. He tugged at his wool sweater, glad to have it in the chilly morning air.

The camp lights lit up the pathway leading away from the CommDish. Oyster shells lined the walk here, carefully delineating the edge of the pathway. Around the large rectangular structure, the last vestiges of flowers hunkered down against the coming winter. "Bess sure fixed the place up nice," he thought as he moved away. Still, he liked living in the Great House better than he would the cramped CommDish.

Baines shouldered the MagPro and headed down the path, toward the hospital that also served as the Solace residence. The hospital had been their first attempt at building anything, and their inexpertness showed in the bulky, rustic look of the building. Still, despite its ugly appearance, the hospital was a sound structure and could probably take on any storm.

Devon and Uly had their own small house further down, the rest lived in the Great House. John and True would start their own place next, now that the rains had subsided. That would mean more space in the Great House for the rest of them. Not that they needed it. The building was designed to act as a temporary residence for over 100 people.

Baines turned back to the CommDish when he heard the dish suddenly start moving. It adjusted itself into a new position and stopped. Well, Morgan was up at least, and probably Bess and the baby too. Now there were four people awake on the planet.

He passed the Great House, with its high roof and impressive length, and continued walking. Cameron's 'chickens' were still asleep and thankfully silent. He blew on his hands as he reached the Cook House and looked to the east again, toward the pasture. The sky was just beginning to lighten. He could see the puffy mounds begin to stir in their field in the coming light. "Good," he thought, "Night watch is officially over." He pulled open the door of the Cook House, turned on the lights, and started up the stove to make some tea. Once he set the kettle on the stove, he headed back outside to watch the sunrise.

* * * *

"Mom!" Uly shook his mother's arm, "Mom, wake up. It's morning!"

Devon rolled over and pulled the drapes back. The sun was just rising over the Last-Step Mountain Range. "Uly," she groaned. "It's just sunrise. Go back to bed."

"But it's Destination Day! It's our first anniversary of reaching this place." He tugged at her covers again. "Come on, let's get up!"

She tiredly looked into his bright eyes and sighed. She could never say 'no' to that face. Her son, who was once so very sick, who was destined to die by the age of nine, was a healthy child of nearly eleven. She pushed the boy away gently. "Go to your room and get dressed. I'm getting up." The boy grinned and ran back to his room. Devon remained for a moment, looking out the window as the sun rose over the mountains. It was going to be a beautiful day.

She dressed and met Uly in the main room of their home. It was still a novelty to her, having an actual house with bedrooms and everything. She touched the rough walls lovingly, and moved her hands through the drapery. This was their home. It wasn't just a set of rooms on a space station; this home was really theirs. "Let's see if anyone else is up," she said and the two walked out the door.

The sun was up by this time and the two of them walked out into the courtyard. Uly ran to the pasture and reached over the fence to touch the fleece of a nearby 'goat.' It lowered its head to nuzzle his hand, and the boy scratched it behind the ears. The creature was tall and strong, with a woolly coat, that could be sheared and spun, and it readily gave a decent quantity of milk. They resembled mountain goats with their long beards, short horns and harsh bleat. All it took to tame them was a steady diet of oats and grass.

Baines saw them and headed over. "Morning," he said.

"Are you excited?" Uly asked. "It's Destination Day! Where's everybody else?"

"Asleep, which would be the smart place to be right now," Baines answered, reaching to pat the goat on its back. It turned its head inquisitively, and then butted Baines roughly with its head. "Hey, is that any way to treat they guy who takes care of you?"

"That just means she loves you," Uly said helpfully. "Dontcha think we should get everyone up? We need to have a really big party with decorations and everything! It's Destination Day!"

Baines raised his eyebrows and looked at Devon. "A party? I don't know where you're thinking we could get decorations. Everything we have is falling apart."

"We'll do something special," Devon assured her son. "Anybody else up?" she asked Baines.

"The Martins," he gestured toward the CommDish. "And I think Walman and Magus will take the boat out before it gets too late."

* * * *

"Ready?" Walman asked.

"Just shove off already!" Magus said sharply, and Walman pushed the boat off the shoal, jumping in quickly. Magus grabbed the oars and started rowing into the protected sea. "Let's start at Fiefdom and work our way toward the Hamlet," she said.

Walman nodded and checked the 'crab pots,' to make sure that they hadn't become tangled after Magus threw them into the boat. Of course, the lines were disordered and would take some time to correct. "We should have started earlier," Walman said.

"I felt like sleeping in," Magus answered, rowing cleanly and smoothly across the gentle ocean toward the barrier islands. "It was a great day for sleeping in." She watched as Walman bailed out the water that was seeping into the bottom of the boat. "You haven't fixed that yet?" she teased.

Walman shook his head. "I must have put a gallon of tree sap into those cracks and it still keeps leaking. I think I just about have it now though." He scooped out another bucket and poured it overboard. "At least it's better than it was." Danziger and Baines had attempted to build a boat out of bits and pieces of the smashed CargoPods. Although the metal boat floated, it was almost impossible to maneuver. Yale, Mazatl and Walman tried wood, building a rowboat, the old fashioned way. Their boat, although a bit leaky, at least could be steered.

It took them nearly 20 minutes to reach the Island Fiefdom and set down their first pots. They skirted along the String of Pearls Islands, past Islands Burgh, Borough, and Pueblo, setting down the traps until all the pots were down. Then, at a secluded area near Island Hamlet, they pulled out their poles and started fishing.

It was a cool, quiet morning. Walman pulled his woolly cap over his eyes and made himself comfortable in the bow of the boat. Magus leaned back against their picnic basket and watched the clouds move slowly across the sky. From time to time she turned toward the island and watched the waves move past the bits of land. Island chickens skittered about near the ocean's edge. She could hear the crash of the surf on the far side of the rocky islands and was glad that they had this protective barrier between them and the wildness of the ocean.

The boat rocked gently in the tide as the sun rose higher into the sky, sending the water in the bottom of the craft sloshing about. Magus lazily tugged at her line and yawned. She couldn't think of a better place to be right now. She kicked Walman with just the tip of her toe.

He awoke with a start and nearly dropped his rod overboard. "Hey, I was sleeping!"

"How can you sleep when it is so dang nice, huh?"

"Pretty easily," he returned, then he jumped as his rod nearly doubled over. He gripped it tightly as the line stained. "I got something!" he yelped.

"Don't loose it," Magus shouted encouragement. "Fight him. Is he fighting? Play him out. Reel him in! Don't let him get away. Get 'em Walman! Get that bastard fish!"

Walman did his best to follow orders and after several minutes pulled the fish from the water. The two of them stared at the creature on the line. It was a strange red and orange fish, large, fat and stubby. Walman had trouble holding it up with one arm. It had a ruff of fur around its head, huge eyes, and long feelers that fell back like ears.

"What the hell is it?" Magus asked.

* * * *

"Well, it is edible," Cameron said. He turned the creature over, unable to hide his look of disgust. "It looks like someone overfed, shaved, painted and drowned a rabbit."

Denner examined the fish critically. "I think I could roast it up and it would taste pretty good. How much to you think it weights? Ten or eleven kilos?

"Yeah, that's about right. You aren't going to experiment with that tonight are you?" Cameron watched as she poked it experimentally. "It is Destination Day, you know."

Denner laughed. "All the more reason to serve it tonight! It's a special occasion, that means we should eat something incredible, and I bet this will taste just great with the right spices. Ah, what should we call it?"

"Well, we can't call it a Drowned-Rabbit Fish," Cameron frowned, "Or Damn-Ugly Thing."

"I don't know, those sound pretty good to me," Denner said, and then added, "How 'bout walman-fish. He did discover it." She spoke loudly so that Walman and Magus could hear her as they carried the last of the crabs to the Cook House.

Walman shook his head. "I don't want something that ugly named after me." He held up one of the crabs. "How about a walman-crab?"

Cameron laughed, "Well, they may not be exactly like the crabs on Earth, but they are still scavengers. You want something that eats garbage named after you?"

Walman threw up his arms, nearly tossing a crab. "It's impossible to name anything after yourself! There is always something bad in the deal. All the good stuff has been named already."

"I can't help it if they decided to name the mountain pass after me. I was just hoping for the Notch." Cameron said with some pride. "Besides, didn't we name a lake for you a while back."

"Yeah, a long while back. We'll never see it again."

"I'll find something for you," Magus said helpfully. "Look, a pebble. How about walman-pebble."

"Too small," he said gruffly

"How bout that tree? Walman-tree!"

"They're too sappy," Walman said with a grin.

"How about those birds?"

"You mean the ones that crap all over everything?"

"Then those big-ole rocks over there? How 'bout them?"

"Too late, Mazatl's already nabbed them."

****

Mazatl sat at Mazatl's Perch and watched the ocean. From his position he could see Refurbishing Cove to the North, with it's harsh crashing surf, and to the South, the calm quiet of Roanoke Beach. The String of Pearls Islands stretched out to surround their beach, protecting it from the wildness that tore at the cove. He had watched the boat as it moved between the islands, hauling in crab pots, and then heading back to the little town. He had seen Walman and Magus unload the boat and pull it back onto shore. He could see all of the buildings of their small settlement, and the goat pasture, and the farmland beyond. He could see that the horse pasture was just about finished, ready for the wild horses they had been planning to bring in from the valley in the spring.

He had found this solitary place almost as soon as they arrived, and discovered that it was provided the perfect vantage point for seeing everything on or about the beach. It was his place; nobody else had figured out how to climb the steep side of the rocks. He sat back and watched the waves sneak quietly around the islands and peter out before they reached the beach. It was a calm, quiet location. Even in the rains of autumn, he would come and spend hours here.

His quiet reverie was broken by a mechanized voice. "Pardon me. I don't mean to intrude," Zero said politely from below.

Mazatl looked down toward the robot at the base of the rocks. Zero was standing near the buckets that Mazatl had filled with oysters during low tide. Although the bi-valve was much more similar to the Earth clam in every way, they resembled the oyster in one critical point. They produced pearls. Of course the pearls were usually meager looking things, hardly larger than a grain of rice, not worth mentioning. But from time to time they discovered a truly beautiful pearl. Nearly everyone had discovered one of the sensational pearls at some point. They were a source of pride to the owners. "Yes?" the man said expectantly to the waiting machine.

"I was sent to deliver your lunch," the mechanized worker responded. He lifted a basket for the man to see. Mazatl quickly scaled down the rocks, leaping down to Zero's level. The robot remained, arm lifted, waiting for Mazatl to reach him.

"Thanks," Mazatl took the long-handled basket and peered inside. "Looks good." There were reeds that grew in the wetlands nearby. Once they perfected the art of basket-making, the reed baskets has replaced most of the other containers they had been using. He nodded at Zero and turned to climb back onto the rocks. "Goodbye."

"Excuse me, might I ask what you see while you are at that location?"

Mazatl turned back to Zero. "I can see quite a bit," he said hesitantly.

"Can you describe it to me?" Zero asked.

Mazatl sighed. How could he describe the way the waves seemed to caress the barrier islands, the way the clouds formed around the Last-Step Mountains like a cloak, how the birds hung in the air - raising and falling, the way the goats flitted about the field like tufts of cotton, how Blue Lake shone in the sunlight. There were no words.

He stood for a moment, deciding, and then took action. "Here," he said and reached under Zero's head, detaching it and shoving it into his large basket. He probably managed to smash the sandwiches that Denner had made for him. He slung the basket over his shoulder and headed for the rocks.

"Wait, I can't see. I really should see," Zero said, so Mazatl stopped and adjusted the head in his basket until the robot could look out, then he began his assent. His right hand had never regained all of its strength since he deeply cut it over a year ago, but it worked well enough to climb. His hands easily found the secret hand-holds, and his feet wedged into the hidden ledges until he reached the top of the rocks.

Mazatl pulled the head out of his basket and set it beside him as he sat down. Then he pulled the smashed sandwiches and fruit out, and began eating.

"Oh, I see..." the head said thoughtfully. Mazatl glanced down at Zero, expecting him to prattle on about everything, but the robot said no more. Flickering lights told him that the machine was still processing information, but there was no reason to say anything just yet.

The two of them watched the CommDish turn slightly as Morgan began another scan and they could see Uly running from his home to the Cook House. They watched the glistening creeks that fed Blue Lake and saw the wind kick up leaves out in the field. Bess emerged from the forest, carrying Amelia in one arm and a basket of berries in the other. She went into the CommDish for several minutes and then walked to the Cook House. A wild creature that looked like a mad cross between a duck and a dog moved through the future horse pasture and disappeared into the undergrowth. They watched as Danziger and True headed out of the Great House and over to a patch of land. They carried sticks, hammers, a bail of string, saws and an axe. The autumn days of relaxation and rain were over. The building season was beginning again.

* * * *

True wound the string around the stake in the soil, and looked up at her father as he sawed the limbs off a fallen tree. "This is where my bedroom is going to be," she said out loud as she moved to the next stake, pulling the string tight between them.

Her father nodded as he worked. "Yes True, and over there will be the living room, and there will be my room."

"I can't wait. I am tired of living in the Great House with all the others. Uly and even Amelia have their own rooms. It's about time I had one too."

Danziger laughed, "I wouldn't call the Martin nursery much of a room. It's more of a closet. You, True-Girl, are going to have more room than you know what to do with." The saw cut cleanly into the wood, making a satisfying zuff-zuff sound as it bit into the branches. Soon he had denuded the tree, and piled the branches haphazardly beside him. He worked them down to firewood sized lengths and once True finished with her work, she stacked the logs outside the perimeter. It felt good to be working outside again. Yale had told them that they should expect a customary rainy season in this part of the world. Two to three weeks of solid rain every year, just after harvest. Two to three weeks was just far too long for his patience.

As True continued stacking the wood, Danziger picked up a shovel and started to work on digging out the roots of the tree. True said, "Its going to be a wonderful house, isn't it Dad?"

"It will be the best house. We were smart to wait a year. Now everyone knows how to put one of these things together. We have experience. Our house will be the best one yet. It'll look a heck of a lot better than the hospital." As he nodded at the mentioned structure, Julia and Alonzo came out. The two seemed to be headed elsewhere, but they changed direction and walked quickly over to where Danziger and True were working.

"You guys started a day early," Alonzo stated.

Danziger shrugged. "I figure we'd get the easy stuff out of the way. That way we can put you to some real work when we start the actual building."

"We're ready," Alonzo said. "Just say the word and we'll pitch in."

"Except we have something to do right now," Julia cut in. "Alonzo, come on, we have to do some gathering."

Alonzo nodded, "Oh yes, gathering..." He rolled his eyes and glanced to Danziger and lowered his voice, "Hey, is it ready?"

The mechanic nodded, also speaking softly, "Oh yeah, it's ready." He patted his shirt pocket.

"You're not carrying it around with you?" Julia hissed. "You might loose it."

"I'm keeping it with me at all times. There's no way I'm going to loose it. This is my one pocket that doesn't have any holes." Still, Danziger unbuttoned the pocket and looked in. "Yes, it's still there. Haven't lost it yet."

"I tied most of the knots," True interjected. "Dad says I have nimble fingers."

"I think it will be just perfect," Julia said, and then she looked at Alonzo. "Where's your sweater?" She looked at him critically.

"It's too itchy," Alonzo shook his head irritatedly.

"We'll have Yale make you another one." Julia pulled Alonzo's collar closed. "He's gotten better at it."

* * * *

Yale carded the wool slowly and methodically. This batch was going to come out very nicely. He had finally perfected the cleaning process. He pulled out briar and tossed it into a small basket and continued his work. Once he was satisfied with the result, he carefully pulled the wool from the board and set it into another basket for spinning.

It surprised him that he enjoyed this job so much. He liked sitting by himself on the front porch or by the fireplace inside, surrounded by others, turning fleece into garments. To him, it was a decadent pastime. He hadn't been programmed to sit quietly, to think of nothing at all, carding, spinning or knitting. He liked the feel of raw wool in his hands, he liked to watch the yarn turn on the spindle, and he enjoyed the gentle click of knitting needles. Even when everyone was in the Great House, talking and singing and running about, he could quietly sit and turn fleece into sweaters, blankets, mittens and socks. There was no need to access anything in his database. He could just sit and create.

He liked the old fashioned look of the spinning wheel. It looked like something that Sleeping Beauty might have been cautioned against. Next year they would build a loom and would also plant cotton and flax from the valley. He would become a weaver next.

Cameron entered the building suddenly. "Hey Yale," he said as he headed to the fireside. "Just finished feeding the chickens. I got seven eggs today. That's a near record." The chickens were actually fat flightless birds that lived on the String of Pearl islands. Cameron had caught about a dozen of them and now raised them in coops under the rafters of the Great House. They were bound to be moved to a new location this spring, before they reached their mating season again. The chickens were not quiet in their love-making. "So," he said, "What's up with you?"

The cyborg smiled, "I could go into great detail, but I think you can determine that I am carding wool."

Cameron shrugged and sat down beside him at the fire. "Everyone's getting ready for the big night. I hope Mazatl found that last pearl we needed."

"Oh, I understand that Bess was able to donate another one." Yale said with a smile. "It seems there was an unknown cache at the Martin estate." He glanced up at Cameron, "Has anyone started work on this evening's festivities yet?"

"Not yet," Cameron replied, "Oh, except I guess Denner and Bess are working on the meal."

* * * *

"I can't believe that's the same fish that Walman caught," Bess said as she bounced Amelia on her knee, the partially finished seaweed-salad sat on the heavy wooden table in front of her. The baby laughed and flung her arms back. Uly sat across from them, carefully slicing vegetables. They had quite an impressive store of fruit, vegetables and grain, partially raised in their own fields, but also harvested from Gerting Valley on the other side of Cameron's Pass.

"You see, it doesn't look so bad now." Denner stepped back and admired her handiwork. The once ugly walman-fish, expertly prepared, divested of it's head, feelers, fur, scales, fins, tail, bones and entrails, sat waiting on the cutting board. She grabbed a nearby bowl and began slathering a mixture of goat-butter and herbs onto the fish. "I'm going to making a stuffing out of some of the nuts that True gathered last week and those berries that you picked this morning. I'll steam the oysters that Mazatl brought around yesterday, and boil the eggs that Cameron dropped off today. Toss it all together with some dried bread and stuff it into the fish. Then I'll throw it in the brick oven and hope for the best."

"Sounds interesting," Bess said skeptically.

"I bet it's real good!" Uly said helpfully. "You're a real good cook."

"You see," Denner said, "I do have my fans." She threatened the boy with a buttery hug, but Uly escaped her grasp and hid behind Bess. Amelia smiled at the action. "I'll get you next time," Denner added and went back to her work. As she began mixing together the stuffing she asked, "Has Morgan even poked his head out of the CommDish today? I know I haven't seen him."

"Oh," Bess said distractedly, "He's on one of his missions again. And you know how he gets when he's in THAT mood. I got him to stop for lunch, but that's about it."

"Well, he'd better come out for dinner. It's going to be fabulous, isn't it lover-boy?" She made another reach for Uly who spun out of her grasp and ran to the other side of the table. "Morgan shouldn't be stuck in there all day on Destination Day."

"It's his own doing. When he gets something into his head, there's no stopping him, and he'll keep working until he drops." Bess stood Amelia up on the table and the baby wiggled in appreciation. "I know I can't get him away."

"Well if you can't convince him, nobody can." Denner headed back to the pantry and poked about for a few minutes. "Oh dang it. I'm out of soothe-root powder."

"You use soothe-root on the food?" Bess asked wonderingly. "I thought that was what Julia prescribes for PMS."

"It is, but it also is plenty tasty. It adds just the right zip, and I'm sure it does everyone some good. She gets most of our spices, you know. Uly, could you head over to the hospital and see if Julia has any to spare?"

Uly answered, "Julia and Alonzo are out looking for medicines right now."

* * * *

Alonzo dug the white soothe-root out of the soil, careful to keep the root intact. He yawned and placed it in his basket and looked around for Julia. She was not in sight. "Jules?" He called, as he stood painfully. The worst part about going on one of these gathering expedition, was all the stooping and squatting. "Julia!" he called again.

"Over here!" the doctor called back, and Alonzo trudged through the undergrowth toward her voice. He found her in the midst of a huge fern, carefully clipping the newest growth. "Look what I found," she said happily. "I'll have enough fever-frond to keep us going until spring. And it's still pretty tender."

"Wonderful," he said. All around the mossy, ferny greenery covered the ground. It all looked so soft and comfortable. He grinned wickedly at Julia, it was the only warning he gave her before he pounced.

"Alonzo!" she laughed as they turned over in the verdant carpet. "Stop it! You're ruining the fern!" but she couldn't stop laughing and they rolled out under a huge cedar-like tree, hung with moss like lace. Alonzo landed on his back, with Julia on top of him. "Stop it!" she said again, thumping him on the chest. "You're terrible. I never should have married you!"

She was too loud. Alonzo knew how to stop that. He reached up for her and drew her to him. Alonzo kissed her into silence, and the two embraced in the green world. "My wife," he said when they finally parted, "My wife, what wonderful words."

"You are a terrible husband," Julia said with mock severity. "You never let me finish what I am working on. We're going to have to start back soon. Tonight is going to be the big night."

"They won't miss us right away, will they?" Alonzo asked.

Julia pulled herself away from him and stood, flicking the bits of lichen and needles that had attached themselves to her. "You'll get your punishment later for misbehaving." She glanced around the quiet wood and said, "It's kinda strange without Ed and Agnes bothering us. I wonder what they're doing."

"Headed south," Alonzo said. "Yeah, I was thinking about them earlier. I didn't realize that I'd miss those Grendlers when they were gone."

Ed and Agnes, the Grendlers that lived in the woods, had made their presence known shortly after the Advancer's arrival to Roanoke Colony. Following a short term of animosity between the two groups, a sort of friendship blossomed. The Grendlers were well versed in the medicinal properties of the plantlife and showed Julia much of what they knew. In return, the Advancers supplied them with bits and pieces of whatever they had on hand. The Grendlers readily took the most worthless looking piece of trash.

The Advancers were just starting to learn the Grendler language, which proved to be a rather intricate and difficult tongue. Of the group, True had the best general understanding of the language. She always had an uncanny knack of comprehension. Although she could not translate the words, with some effort she could guess the meaning. Yale had a carefully recorded database of Grendler words, and added to it constantly, and thus had the largest vocabulary. Morgan, who treated the language as a code to be broken, could produce the most concise and literal translations. Between the three of them, they could understand most of what Ed and Agnes told them. The two Grendlers had headed south, via the spider tunnels, just before the rains and would be back in the spring.

"Come on, we'd better get going. I still need a couple things before we head back." They found their baskets; Julia's was scattered. The two of them sat side by side and scooped the items back into the container.

There were medications for half a dozen ailments, plus a few cooking spices. Alonzo identified everything but the red berries that took up most of the space. "What are these for?" he asked.

"Oh, I thought we could use them in the decorations for the party. They're not good for anything else."

Alonzo nodded. "So who exactly do they have setting up this party?" he asked

* * * *

"Look out, you idiot!" Baines said as Walman knocked the decorated panel off the wall and sent it to the ground. Baines caught it before the panel hit, but some of the painted nutshells and cones unglued themselves and scattered across the floor.

"Ah, sorry," Walman said, from his precarious position on the ladder. "I didn't mean to do that."

"Geez Wal-fish, this one was one of the good ones."

"Would you stop calling me that!" He tugged on the bluish cable that he had been tacking around the room. "Give me a hand with this and I'll help you glue those goodies back on the board."

"You are not touching my creation." Baines carefully leaned the panel against the wall and then helped Walman get the cable up. It made a halfway decent garland, and what with Baines' panels and Cameron's centerpiece, the dining room in the Cook House was looking rather festive.

Cameron worked on the centerpiece, while Baines and Walman finished adjusting the blue cable. "What do you think?" he asked as Walman climbed down the ladder. "Do you think I used too much lavender?"

"Ah, it looks great," Baines said as he picked up the scattered remains of the panel. "Now if I can just get this fixed before dinner."

Devon, John and True entered the dining hall with armloads of evergreen boughs. They brought with them a clean and powerful scent of pine. "I think we can find a place for these somewhere," Devon said, glancing from Walman to the ladder.

Walman sighed, and climbed the ladder again, "Start handing them up. I guess I can work them into the rafters,"

Danziger pushed him away, "This is man's work," he said to Walman and climbed the rickety ladder. The ladder had originally been found as a twisted mass in Refurbishing Cove. Even now, after much hammering and mending, it still was a rather frightening thing to climb.

"Fine with me," Walman said, picking up the boughs that Danziger had dropped.

"Hey, is the party starting already?" Magus said, as she pushed open the door, her arms loaded with bottles. Walman dropped the branches to assist her with the berry wine.

"Isn't anyone going to help me?" Danziger demanded, but nobody seemed interested in handing him the greenery.

Mazatl opened the door, with Zero at his heels. Mazatl said, "When's dinner?"

"Where have you been all day?" Baines asked, "And have you had Zero with you this whole time? We could have used him. I hope you were doing something important."

Mazatl nodded, "Yes, it was important."

"Well, can you get him to hand me some of those branches?" John asked again, and Zero went to work.

Magus produced candles and True pulled Uly out of the kitchen to round up colored bits and pieces of anything. Alonzo and Julia stepped into the room in time to add their berries to the mix, and everything was finished just as Denner banged her way out of the kitchen. "It's just about ready," she told them. "Hey, you guys have been busy!"

Bess pushed open the door as Denner was heading back into the kitchen, and the rich smell of dinner wafted into the hall, "Could someone please go get Morgan? It's getting late and dinner is almost ready."

****

Alonzo rapped quickly on the CommDish door and entered into the electronics bay. Morgan was sitting at the control console, GEAR on, lethargically tapping at the keyboard. "Hey," Alonzo said, "They sent me over to haul you out of here. Dinner is just about ready."

Morgan didn't turn from the controls. "Let me just finish up this scan. I'm almost done."

"Okay, ya mind some company?" Alonzo sat down in the extra chair and leaned back.

"Just try to keep from bothering me, okay?" Morgan sighed expansively and continued his work. "Come on..." he said encouragingly to the console, "You gotta be out there. Just this once, give me a ping." He listened for a moment, and then banged his hand on the tabletop. "Damn it!"

"Still nothing, huh?" Alonzo said unnecessarily.

Morgan, frustrated, pushed himself back from the console and threw the GEAR at the keyboard. "Why can't I find it? I've been looking for a freaking year and I still can't find it."

"If the Colony ship is out there, you'll find it," Alonzo tried to sound reassuring. "They must be a long way off course."

"But how? You said the coordinates where correct before we separated. They should be right there!" Morgan shouted, "A ship as big as that should be easy to find. I mean, you just start at the stations and draw a line to the planet. I should be able to find them like a bead on a string. But no, they're not there. Why can't I find it? I must be screwing something up."

"We know the Council planted a bomb on the ship and a spy in the crew. They must have done something to the tracking system on the Colony ship too."

"I've been expanding the search exponentially. How could they have gotten so far off course? I should have found them by now." Morgan shook his head sadly "And, I really, really wanted to find them today." He looked up at Alonzo excitedly, "Wouldn't it have been great if I found the ship today? On Destination Day!"

"Yeah, that would have been great. Is that why you've been cooped up in here all day?

"I just wanted to do something special," he said and continued, "I was thinking, I might just go out there right now and tell 'em that I got a possible sighting."

Alonzo frowned, "Why would you want to do that."

"Because it's Destination Day. Everyone would be so excited. They'd think that I actually found the ship for a while and everyone would be happy. And we could celebrate! I'd be a hero." Morgan looked to Alonzo for approval.

"Bad idea," Alonzo said. "Why would you want to get everyone's hopes up for nothing?"

"I don't know. It would be better than telling them that I found nothing, AGAIN. I don't know why I bother. It's all a pointless exercise in futility." He flung up his arms in frustration.

"Well, maybe it's time you traded the responsibility off to someone else. You've been at it for almost a year already."

Morgan sighed. "No, I should be the one. I know what I'm doing and nobody can run this equipment as well as I can. You've all tried it and hated it. I mean, at least I got the knack for this sort of thing."

"Nobody expects you to knock yourself out looking for this ship you know." Alonzo grabbed the crutches that were leaning against the wall, "Come on Morgan, let's go out and join the others. They'll be glad to see us."

Morgan signed and took the crutches from Alonzo, "Yeah, I guess you're right. Might as well join the party. Hey, make yourself useful and grab that thing over there."

"What? This?" Alonzo pointed to the VR-set with the speaker attached to one side. "What did you to do it?" He picked up the devise gingerly. They had hardly any VR gear left and it seemed a shame to cannibalize one of their last working sets.

"It's a kind of a victrola," Morgan responded.

"A what? What's it for?"

"You'll see, just bring it along." Morgan hoisted himself onto the crutches. He collided into the doorway of the ComDish and grimaced, "Man, I hate these things. I don't think I'll ever get the hang of them."

"You're doing fine, don't worry about it."

"Yeah, right." Morgan frowned and started toward the Cook House. "Hey, do you know what they cooked for dinner?"

"Some weird fish that Walman caught."

* * * *

"That was delicious!" Devon pronounced as everyone settled back into their seats. "I say that 'walman-fish ala Denner' is a success."

"Here's to the cook!" Cameron said, nodding to Denner.

"And the man who supplied the eggs," Denner responded.

"Here's to the fisherman!" Magus added.

"And the vintner." Walman clinked his glass against Magus'

"And the spice harvester," included Alonzo.

"And the decorating team," suggested Bess

"How about the goat milker and butter churner!" Baines said, seeking attention for himself.

"It kinda tasted like chicken," Morgan said confidentially to True who giggled into her hand.

"Yes, thank you to everyone," Devon said as she stood at the head of the table, "None of this would have been possible without everyone's help. What you see here was due to the hard work of everyone. The food, the decorations, the tables we're sitting at. Everyone's hands took part in the building of this hall." Devon looked into the beaming faces of nearly everyone at the table. Only Morgan frowned self-consciously. "And I do mean everyone. Morgan, if it weren't for your work, I am certain we wouldn't have surveyed half of the distance currently recorded. And what good is any of this," she gestured broadly to the building, "if not for those that are yet to come? And you will find them. I am certain of that." Morgan managed to unfrown his face somewhat and look around the table.

"I wanted to take this time to thank all of you. For my son's health, for the hard work that you all perform every day. For making this dream come true," Devon stated. "I just don't know how to express what I feel for all of you. You are closer than family. I feel honored to know all of you, and gifted to have you as my friends."

Danziger stood suddenly, and touched her softly on the arm. "I'm not really one for speeches, but these idiots here gave me the responsibility." He shuffled about somewhat nervously and then said, "Devon, when we first reached this place we all decided to name this town Adair. But you vetoed it. You said you wanted it to be named for all of us. I don't know who came up with Roanoke Colony, but..." he glanced up to see Baines. "Oh yeah, it was Baines who came up with the idea that we should name this town after the ship that brought us here."

He glanced around again, "Now where was I? Oh yeah. Well since we couldn't honor you by naming our town after you, we wanted to give you something special." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small package, wrapped in cloth. "We all pitched in to get you this."

Devon took the package from Danziger and looked at the others, puzzling over what they could have gotten for her, so far from the nearest store. She pulled back the cloth and revealed a string of pearls. "Oh," she gasped, "The pearls!"

Danziger nodded, "Only the best ones. We all contributed."

They could hear Morgan whispering to Bess, "You didn't give them our good pearls, did you?" but she shushed him quickly.

"There are 16 pearls on the string. One for each of us here today."

"Even I am included," Zero spoke up.

"Of course you are," Devon said as she held the string up to her neck. Danziger helped her put it on and she stood back from the rest, looking down at the necklace. "This is really wonderful. Thank you everyone."

"No problem," Danziger said with a smile.

"Hand it over!" Morgan hissed to Alonzo, who sat across from him. Alonzo passed the jury-rigged VR-GEAR across to him and Morgan fiddled with the controls.

"It's gotta work," True said confidently as the devise sat silently. "It worked yesterday..."

"It better work," Morgan said. Suddenly a drum beat and a horn line was heard from the speaker and the big band music filled the air. "Hey, it works!" Morgan said.

The music played over them for a minute and then Alonzo swept Julia into the open area of the room, and Mazatl lead Denner out after them. Magus said, "What the hell," and dragged Walman with her onto their makeshift dance floor. Danziger took Devon's hand and then took her into his arms and they danced onto the floor to the sounds of Benny Goodman.

Uly picked up Amelia and twirled her about slowly, making the baby laugh. Yale bowed to True and said, "May I have the pleasure of this dance?" and True gracefully took his hand. Bess leaned against Morgan and the two of them swayed in their seats.

Baines and Cameron tried to look interested in drinking the berry wine, until Magus suddenly abandoned Walman and pulled Cameron onto the dance floor. Walman frowned and sat down in his seat. Mazatl suddenly tired, and Baines shot up to take his place, spinning Denner madly across the floor. Magus used Cameron to impede their path and almost knocked down all four of them. Zero tapped his foot to the music and hoped they would play a song with lyrics.

And the Dining Hall was filled with laughter until the sky grew dark and the moons rose high into the sky.

* * * *

Devon and John walked out into the moonlight. Her pearl necklace glowed next to her skin in the pale light. "You know, you are wonderful," John said softly to her.

The waves gently lapped against the shore as they moved along the beach. "Tell me more," Devon said.

"You know we could never have accomplished any of this without you." He looked into her eyes. "You are the string that holds the whole thing together."

"So now I am string?" Devon asked.

"Mighty important string," Danziger answered.

They watched as the party slowly broke up. Morgan had already taken Amelia to bed. Then the children were sent to sleep. Slowly the others left the Cook House, as Devon and John sat in the darkness and listen to the surf. Denner, Mazatl and Bess stayed to clean up. When those three finally emerged from the Cook House, it was quite late and growing cold. John held Devon tightly to him, wrapping her up in his coat. "Let's stay here forever," John whispered to her.

"It's too cold," Devon said with a laugh. "We should be going in now. Mazatl is going to be on night watch tonight. He'll wonder what we're up too."

"Let him wonder. Weren't we thinking of quitting the night watch anyway? Maybe tonight's a good night to start." John said, "Let's just stay a little longer." They watched Bess walk across the compound to the CommDish.

* * * *

Bess quietly opened the door to her home and entered the electronics bay. Morgan was in his chair, wearing his GEAR, with Amelia curled up in his arms, both of them asleep. Bess carefully put the equipment into 'night mode' and took the GEAR from her husband's head. He didn't wake up until she lifted Amelia from his arms. "Shhhh," she said when he started to say something. She carried the baby to her room and laid her in the crate that served as her crib. They would be outgrowing this tiny place soon. Amelia would need a larger room once she started walking, and of course they would need another bedroom soon enough. She wondered when she should start talking to Morgan about having another child. She knew it was good for him to have another person to love and trust him so completely. If nothing else, Amelia needed a sibling to keep her from becoming too badly spoiled. She looked at her daughter in the low light of the nursery. She had Morgan's smile and his hands.

Bess walked back to the electronics bay and found Morgan asleep again. "Morgan, honey," she whispered.

"Hmm?" he woke up again and smiled when he saw her, "Is it morning already?"

"No, its time for bed." She pulled on one of his arms to get him to his feet, but realized that was a plan that would fail. He was half asleep again already. Instead, she pushed on the back of the chair and started wheeling him down the hall.

"A free ride?" he yawned and obligingly hooked his right foot under his left and lifted his legs. Bess pushed him into the bedroom and dragged him onto the bed.

"You are hopeless when you're sleepy, you know that?" she said as she pulled off his shirt.

Morgan yawned again. "Hopelessly hopeless." he muttered, and she carefully worked off his shoes.

She threw back the blankets and maneuvered him under them, laughing quietly when she realized that he was purposely making it harder on her. "There!" she said, once she had him settled in bed. "Now go to sleep!"

"Now that you got me all woke up, I don't know if I can," he said, looking up at her.

"I don't think you'll have any problem," she said, and was right. He was asleep again, before she could dress for bed and climb in beside him. She rested her head for a moment on his chest and sighed. "You work too hard," she said softly and kissed him on the temple. He smiled in his sleep.

She lay beside her husband in the dark for several minutes, listening to him breath, hearing the slight sounds that Amelia made in the next room. When she was a child, Bess thought her life was destined to end on a wasted earth, beneath a murdered sky. Yet here she was, on a beautiful planet, in her own home, with a husband and child whom she loved more than she knew how to say. She felt richer than the Queen of Sheeba with all her gold and jewels. For Bess, her family and friends were all the pearls she required.

Beyond the CommDish, the Cook House, the Great House, the Hospital and the Adair home, the ocean played against the String of Pearls. She closed her eyes, curled up against Morgan and fell asleep

THE END