Page 12 of Escape from Nova Nine
Clever though he was, Zade only knew the basics of the prisoner’s sign language. And he’d have to find out for himself what a chaos-bender it was to be in a pharma test group.
As she’d expected, Admin issued orders a few moments later. “Workgroup 17-C. Proceed to the assigned area. You have enough workers to complete this shift.”
Their assigned guards, Lhap Cho and Etellia, escorted them into the working area and gave Julke a pack with a new materials scanner. They sealed the airlock, then took their usual place outside it.
Julke showed Zade how to juggle hopper operation and enviro monitoring duties. When she passed Lantham as he stood next to the jig, she used sign language to tell him that on the way in, she’d seen seven griffins in the tunnels heading in the opposite direction.
Lantham frowned, then looked toward the airlock. “We forgot to tell Zade about the emergency exit procedure.”
It was cold comfort that Lantham also recognized the griffin exodus as a bad omen.
Zade paused on the first rung of the hopper’s side ladder. “The orientation vid said to stay in the work area if there’s trouble.”
Julke made a rude gesture in prisoner sign language. “The vid is old. If the extraction process accidentally mixes enough chofirium, rhybarium, and xeronium together, there’s a good chance it’ll react sooner or later. You’ll feel a vibration like a decompensating flux engine. If you do, or someone yells ‘blowout,’ run like a meteor is on your tail through the blue-striped extraction tunnels to the surface refinery. The guards will be running. too. Follow them if you can. Their suits have lights and current maps so they don’t get lost in the labyrinth. They don’t want to become one with the universe before their time, either.”
Lantham frowned. “Don’t get the bright idea to hitch a ride on an ore cart. It’ll kill you.”
Zade started to speak, then made a face. “Got it.” His expression looked frustrated, like he wanted to ask a dozen questions.
Julke sympathized, but better explanations would have to wait until they weren’t being monitored.
She picked up the cutter and powered it up. It was going to be a long shift.
* * *
A much-improved Sutrio arrived several hours later to take over the cutter. Julke relieved Zade of the duty to move the trash tailings out of their way and keep the airlock entryway clear.
Sutrio unexpectedly set the cutter down. When Julke went to see if Sutrio was in trouble again, her friend pointed to the lower left corner of the gravity plate. “Look.”
She didn’t know what she was supposed to see until she caught the unmistakable thrash of a griffin tail. Unlike the common griffins like Moonlet, the stealth breed of griffins shunned the busier human habitation areas. Only Sutrio’s animal-affinity talent would have noticed it.
Stealth griffins looked as flat as a solar cell. Their feathers were dusty mottled gray, and could color-morph to blend into the rocky scenery. This one was lying flat up against the wall where the plate was embedded. It must have gotten in during the downtime and been there all morning.
With a glance toward the airlock doors, Julke spoke for the benefit of the guards. “I’ll get the scanner.”
As she went back to get it, she made the sign for griffin so the others would know what was happening.
She needn’t have worried about Zade remembering what that sign meant. He idled the hopper, then jumped down. “I’ll shadow you.”
“Good idea. It’s a newer model.” Julke pulled the unit out of its pack and led him to the right spot and pointed.
In case the guards were looking, she made a show of setting up the scanner and setting it to run. Zade hunkered down next to her, but all his attention was on the animal.
The griffin stood and shook itself. Without warning, it sprang up and landed on the shoulder of Zade’s suit, then wrapped its thick, barbed tail around the back of his helmet. Within moments, the griffin’s feathers mimicked the colors of Zade’s suit.
A wondrous smile lit up his face. “Hello, little one.”
Julke cleared her throat loudly. “Yes, that’s right, thelittlereadout is theoneto watch.”
He turned to her, wide-eyed, and made the sign for “sorry.”
She waved away his apology. Everyone should have an enchanted moment like that now and again.
Sutrio laughed silently and held out her gloved hand to the griffin. It opened its beak and worked its throat like it was vocalizing. Luckily, the machinery noise covered it, he guards might investigate, otherwise.
The griffin pecked at Zade’s helmet and vocalized again.
Sutrio’s eyes jittered a moment. Her expression went slack.
