“Oh, I’ve always gotten fun out of tilting against the orthodoxy. . . . And anyway, a lot of it rubs off from Vicki. You’ll need to talk to her some more after the Aztec gets here.”
“I already know. She was terrific when Sariena and I visited her on Dione, with Emil Farzhin.”
There was a silence until Keene came out from under again. “Do you really think there’s still much chance of getting through in time?” Charlie asked.
“Whatever it is, it isn’t something I can change,” Keene replied.
Charlie eyed him curiously. “Have you ever given up on anything in your life, Lan?” he asked.
Keene paused to think about it. “I don’t think so, not really. . . . I guess I’ve always been too scared to.”
“Scared?” Charlie looked surprised. “How come?”
“It seems like one of those things where once you start, it could too easily become a habit,” Keene said.
* * *
Charlie filled the tank for the diesel, while Keene secured the electrical connections to the runabout’s drive system and set the transformer taps and rectifier control. The diesel started after a few seconds of coughing and spluttering. Keene checked the generator output, and after a couple of adjustments the motors were responding with all power indicators reading correctly. The last thing they did was camouflage the vehicle by smearing on a layer of mud, paying special attention to the bright yellow stripes, and adding some leafy sprigs and clods of grass for good measure. Keene was quite pleased with the result. “That’s it. We’re ready to go,” he announced.
But they were far from where they had planned to be by this time of day. And having to detour back up into the basin would set them back more. They agreed they would try to force a way through without going all the way back up the scree ramp to the ridge—which was probably impractical anyway. Instead, they would try to leave the basin over the shallower rise on its south side, beyond which what looked like a descending spur seemed to extend in roughly the direction they needed to take.
* * *
Jorff reported to Zeigler from Joburg that the fifteen native males of fighting age that Rakki had supplied were proving to be quick and efficient learners. Leisha was working with Rakki and Yobu to produce a map, based on their recollections of the journey they had made, showing the region where the larger cave and swamp clans lived. When they had made the best job of it they could, Zeigler would order a probe reconnaissance of the area to pinpoint the locations. From Yobu’s accounts, and allowing for growth in numbers since the exodus of Rakki and his followers, Zeigler though it might be possible to increase his force by at least a couple of hundred. And then there was the new band of survivors on the far coast to be investigated.
He had just cleared down from Jorff’s call, when the message indicator flashed again. This time it was Kelm, from the new hangar that had begun operating ground-launched probes. “We’ve found them,” he informed Zeigler.
“The Scout?”
“Right. It’s about sixty-five miles west, following the river, making for the coastal plains.”
“That was fast work. Did we get a break in the weather for once?”
“Even easier. Something on board has got a locator transponder that they didn’t turn off. I sent a probe there to confirm visually—from long range.”
“Good.” There was no point in tipping them off. “Just keep them under observation for now.”
“And there’s another thing,” Kelm said.
“What?”
“Apparently, no one’s been able to raise Keene this morning. The people who deal closest with him are vague. I have a hunch that maybe he changed his mind and went too.”
“How vulnerable are we if they have any more trouble with the power system?” Zeigler asked after a pause. “Is that second of his still here, Shayle?”
“Yes, she’s here. I checked.”
Zeigler pondered for a while. Maybe they would have to institute more stringent measures to make sure that key personnel stayed around. That was something he’d hoped to avoid until the new recruits began arriving. He couldn’t afford to have his credibility put to the test and found lacking. Hence, at this stage, letting the people in the Scout go had been preferable to trying to stop them. The risk now, on the other hand, was that it would send a message to all the rest.