The Quality of Mercy by Etain Antrim

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The Quality of Mercy, Part 2
Etain Antrim

Walman stood on a hill top, looking through the jumpers, while Alonzo sat in the front passenger seat in the 'Rail. "Hey, Walman, how's it look? Any good pass possibilities?"

"No, not even close," Walman growled in answer over his shoulder.

"Well, I guess we should continue on. You want me to drive for a while?"

"No. I'd rather drive." Walman trudged back down the hill and climbed into the vehicle. He immediately started the vehicle forward, then snuck a peek at his partner. Alonzo looked cold and was already wearing all of his cold weather gear, including a hat, which was almost unheard of, but his face was calm as he surveyed the scenery. Walman was relieved and disappointed that the pilot was coping so well. Relieved that he did not have to deal with a failing partner on a trip out of camp, but perversely disappointed none-the-less. *I hope he freezes his butt off.* he thought. "You want to stop for lunch soon?"

"Whenever. I'm not really hungry yet." Alonzo was trying to be agreeable, but Walman just wasn't giving him a chance. "We can stop later if you want to get some more done first."

"Let's get to the next drainage, and then we can stop."

"Sure." Alonzo was beginning to think that Julia had been right. His enjoyment in being outside had started to wane quickly, beaten back under the dual assault of the weather and his equally cold partner.

***

Julia looked up at the sky in concern. The day had started off with a deep blue sky that looked even more intense against the snow that covered the hills all around them. But now, as she left the Medtent to join the group for lunch, the sky was a drab winter gray. How had that happened? She walked into the common room, where the meals were all served, only to find the tables covered with paper and no sign of food. Devon, Baines, Yale and Morgan Martin were clustered in a group, excitedly discussing something.

"We may be able to use one of the vehicle systems and salvage an amplifier." Baines was gesturing broadly, unusually animated, while he spoke. "I suggest the ATV system, since the TransRover and DuneRail systems are used much more often."

"But, that would mean that the ATV wouldn't be usable for scout trips . . ." Yale noticed the doctor standing in the door. "Julia, can I help you?"

"Ahhh. Actually, I thought it was time for lunch. Sorry to interrupt." Julia started to turn around.

Devon looked at her watch, "You're right, it is. I guess we should clear these tables." She matched her movements to her words, and carefully started to pick up maps and pages of calculations from off the table. "It seems darker outside than I had expected. Maybe that's why we lost track of the time."

"Have you heard from the scout team?" Julia asked with a slight frown.

"No, I don't think so. Yale, Morgan, did you hear anything before I got here?"

Both men shook their head.

"Would you mind if I give them a quick call?"

"No, Julia. Please go ahead. I hear Magus and Bess coming with the food, so we need to get this stuff picked up." Devon, Baines, Yale and Morgan all scurried to get their stuff cleared up in as orderly as fashion as they could.

While they did that, Julia walked over to the communications center, and called Walman and Alonzo.

"Yeah. Solace here." He looked and sounded tired.

"Alonzo, I'm just checking to see how it's going. You find anything?" Julia actually wanted to ask the pilot other questions. *How is it going with Walman?*; *When will you be back?*; and most importantly, *Are you all right?*

"Nothing yet, but we're on our way to the next drainage. And, yes, I'm keeping warm Doc." He smiled tiredly at her over the channel.

"Did you notice the clouds?"

"Yeah, we're keeping an eye on them. They don't look like a storm though, at least not from what we can see here."

"Okay. You guys be careful, and give us an idea when we can expect you back."

"Sure thing. I'll call later in the afternoon. Solace out."

Julia broke the connection, worry clear on her face while she had her back to the room. *It's too soon. Alonzo isn't strong enough yet. I should have put my foot down.* She collected herself, forcing a calm she didn't feel on her expression. As she turned around, she noticed Devon looking at her questionly. "They're fine. No luck yet. They'll call later this afternoon to tell us when they'll be back."

"Okay. It looks like lunch is here." Devon walked over to the doctor and lay her hand lightly on the doctor's forearm. "He'll be fine Julia. Walman won't do anything, even if he isn't feeling charitable yet."

Julia looked at her blankly, "It's not Walman I'm worried about." And with that, Julia walked over to stand in the serving line.

***

After a fruitless day spent scouting 3 creek drainages, Walman and Alonzo turned around. The gray day had darkened, and a new chill hung in the air. The return journey was as silent as the outbound had been, and they were only a five miles or so from camp when the DuneRail cruised to a stop. "Why are we stopping?"

"I don't know. I guess there's a problem with the 'Rail." Walman hopped out. "Damn, it looks like we're out of juice. Those clouds must be blocking more radiation than I thought." Walman rubbed his face irritably with his hands.

"If we need to recharge, I'll call camp and let them know." Alonzo pulled out his gear, "Base camp. Anyone there?"

"'Lonz?" Magus' voice came crackling through the channel.

"Yeah. Hey, listen, we've had to stop to let the 'Rail recharge. We'll be back later than we had thought. Would you let Julia and Devon know?"

"Sure thing. You may not be able to see it from where you are, but Yale says he thinks a front's coming through. He checked a couple of minutes ago, and he says the barometer is dropping. We were about to give you a call. You guys may just want to bunker down there through the night."

"We'll see how the recharging goes. We're only a few miles from camp. I don't think we'll have any problem getting back tonight, but I'll call you later to let you know. Solace out." Alonzo looked up at Walman where he stood beside the vehicle. "Did you catch that? Yale thinks there's a storm coming through."

"Great! The perfect end to a perfect day! In that case, I'll go gather some wood, just in case we spend the night here." Walman turned and headed up the slope and into the trees, cursing his luck silently. Just what he wanted, more opportunity to rub elbows with Solace.

"Okay. I'll get us set up in case we need to camp here." Alonzo felt like he was talking to himself, but Walman raised an arm in acknowledgement without turning around.

***

"Well, it looks like we will have to wait before we can string a line up to the peak, at least until we see what tomorrow brings weather-wise." Morgan was impatient to get his experiment started, but bowed to the inevitable.

"We need to consider what our antenna design should be. We may be able to rig it up here, and carry it up the mountain in pieces." Baines was not ready to come to a halt though. "I'll bet Danziger could help us construct it once we know what the shape and size should be."

"Yeah, great idea!" Morgan looked up at a tap on his shoulder to find Bess standing beside him.

"Morgan. We need to get you to clear the tables for dinner. Could you help me set the tables?" Bess stood there alone, looking surprisingly forlorn.

"Sure sweetie. Baines, you want to help me move these papers?" Morgan stood up, and only then realized how long he and Baines had been sitting over their plans. His legs were tight, his lower back was sore, and it was getting dark outside. He looked around him like a man coming out of a dream. "Wow, it's a lot later than I thought."

"Yeah, you two have been sitting there since lunch, 6 hours ago."

"Bess, I think we know how to do it! We will be able to contact the dish soon. Isn't that great?" Morgan stretched a bit while he quickly gathered pages of calculations.

"That's wonderful, honey." But Bess looked solemn as she laid out the places for dinner on the newly cleared surfaces. "So, contacting the dish, what will that do for us? We won't be able to talk to the colony ship yet, will we?"

"No, but it means that when we can, we will be able to." Morgan realized that Bess didn't understand anything they had done today. "I'll tell you what. I'll explain exactly why we want to do this now, right after supper. Okay?"

Bess nodded, "All right. Want to help me bring in the dishes?"

"Sure thing."

End of Part 2.

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