Three nights later, Kharmadi lay still and quiet next to the high grasses of the meadow, observing activity in the flattened areas where the Terrans and Rcyyt had been so busy this past week. She could hear the buzz, hum, click, and chirp of the insectoids in the high grasses, but nothing stirred in the flattened area. A telling indication of the impact of Terrans on the local ecosystem.
As she lay watching, while her equipment recorded and counted, something broke a branch in the fur brush at the edge of the meadow. Kharmadi held her breath, watching as several half-meter tall, six legged, spider-like creatures emerged from the furry bramble.
She had net in one hand and port-a-cage in the other in the space of time between one breath and another. Without stopping to think, or be amazed, Kharmadi netted the largest of the bunch, which had fortunately frozen as the others scattered. The thing tried to claw its way out of the net, even to the point of methodically untwisting the net from around it as Kharmadi opened the port-a-cage.
Kharmadi ended up touching it as she quickly stuffed it in the cage, since it had almost escaped the net. It didn’t bite, neither did it exude anything caustic or poisonous. It felt smooth, hairless, and cool to Kharmadi, with soft, dry skin over hard bony body. The tentacles themselves had bones in the upper portion, where they connected with the body, but were boneless and pliable at the ends.
It stuck tentacles out of the cage’s bars, feeling the door’s mechanisms. An indication of intelligence?
Kharmadi wasn’t certain. Several animal species were known to be able to open doors, windows, and cages – simple mechanical kinds – without other signs of intelligence. She hesitated, wondering if she should release it, on the potential of its intelligence.
However, if she did she had no way of knowing if she could ever find another one. In fact, how could the native Rcyyt not know of the spider-like creatures’ existence? Kharmadi decided to take the creature back to her lab, and turn the problem of what it was and how to proceed over to Dr. Ayers.
Examining it in the bright light of the three moons, Kharmadi could see no sign of any eyes. It appeared to sniff with a sort of snout on one end, so she assumed it could smell, but she could see no mouth, and it didn’t make any noises at all. She had expected at least whimpering or howling. A large lump on the top of the creature, its back, resembled a camel’s hump, and appeared to be soft, in that it flopped a bit from side to side as the creature wriggled and squirmed in the cage. The lump’s movement resembled a back pack, and Kharmadi wondered if she’d captured an ill or injured specimen.
The feisty thing had wrapped its tentacles around the door’s locking mechanism and was well on the way to opening the door. Kharmadi grabbed a simple keypad-lock and slapped it on the door. The creature began investigating this new lock as Kharmadi stacked the cage and the rest of her stuff on a wagon to take back to camp.
By the time they’d reached the camp, Kharmadi was beginning to have serious reservations about the creature she’d caught. It had begun to type various combinations into the keypad lock. Though not very methodically. It merely tapped against the keypad randomly for a bit, then paused, then repeated.
After dumping it into one of the largest specimen cages in her lab, Kharmadi slapped an old-fashioned lock with a key onto the door. The creature paced its cage, sniffing everything and running its tentacles across every surface. She watched it as the sun rose outside, contemplating what to do.
In the brighter light of her lab she could see that the spider-like creature was the same purplish color as the horns on the Rcyyt. But other than that there was no resemblance between the two species. Though this was the first species that Kharmadi had seen whose color resembled the Rcyyt. The creature definitely had no eyes and no obvious means of hearing. When it stood, Kharmadi could see that underneath it had what appeared to be a mouth, along with other, mysterious features. It still made no noise, and showed no sign it realized she was there.
The lump on the top of the creature appeared to be a pouch of some sort. The opening gaped slightly, but not enough to allow Kharmadi to see inside. The entire lump, pouch and all, was just smaller than Kharmadi’s head. The skin of the pouch appeared to be stretched and tight. Kharmadi wondered if perhaps the creature used it to transport things.
She set her recording equipment to document everything it did. Then she crouched down by the cage to look at it again.
“Well,” she said. “You wait here. I’ll get Dr. Ayers after I get a shower. Then we’ll decide what to do with you.” She grabbed a towel from the closet, and headed for the bathroom.
As the warm water washed away the dust and debris she’d picked up though her night of wallowing in the muck and dirt and bramble in the meadow, Kharmadi mulled the strange creature over. She couldn’t wait to bring Dr. Ayers in to view it.
After a quick scrub, she wrapped the towel around herself and stepped out to check her lab. Not certain if she would find the creature still caged.
Instead Iol and Big blue horns were crouched over the cage, frantically trying to open it. As soon as they heard her they both whirled around, standing so as to block her view of the creature in the cage.
The three stared at each other for a moment. Iol appeared the same, if rather upset, but Big blue horns looked as if it had gone on a sudden, extreme diet. The enormous belly was gone. The plop-plunk of water dripping off Kharmadi echoed in the suddenly quiet lab. The agitation of the Rcyyt only served to make Kharmadi more nervous.
“Hello,” she said, “I wasn’t really expecting company this morning.”
Big blue horns began shouting. Only Iol hanging on its arm prevented Big blue horns from attacking Kharmadi.
Clutching her towel tighter, Kharmadi backed up until she hit the wall. “What? What’s the matter?” With a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, Kharmadi knew she’d done something very, very wrong. Sidling around them with her back to the wall, she made her way to her desk, picked up the key, and tossed it to them.
Iol caught it with one hand, and had no problem urging Big blue horns to ignore Kharmadi in favor of releasing the creature in the cage. They turned their backs on Kharmadi, blocking her view of the creature, and began fussing at the cage’s door. The cage’s hinges squeaked, and Iol stood up, with its back turned to Big blue horns and the cage. It spread the folds of its loose clothing as if to hide whatever was going on behind it.
Kharmadi stared horrified into Iol’s wide dark purple eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset anyone. What is the matter?”
Big blue horns rose, fastening its draped toga at the shoulders. Then its hands began petting and patting its now restored, enormous mid-section, while it cooed and murmured softly.
“Oh-oh,” Kharmadi whispered. “What happened here?”
Iol gently urged Big blue horns towards the door. It looked back at Kharmadi, and covered its mouth momentarily, before saying, “No talk.”
Slumping against her desk, Kharmadi shivered against a sudden chill in the air. Whatever had happened, whatever she’d done, there was going to be big trouble. She headed for her bedroom, and dressed quickly.
Dr. Ayers had left camp, so Kharmadi had to page him. Getting him to leave the meadow and come back to camp without telling him why was nearly impossible, but she finally convinced him.
“This had better be important,” Dr. Ayers growled as he walked into Kharmadi’s lab.
“It is.” Kharmadi winced at the thought of how critical it might end up being. “But I think I’m not supposed to tell anyone.”
“Excuse me?” Dr. Ayers folded his arms, while standing aggressively over Kharmadi. “And who gave you that order?”
“I think you’d better watch this.” Kharmadi pulled up the recordings she’d made that morning on her computer. “I found a very interesting specimen last night.”
“Oh!” Dr. Ayers pulled a chair closer to her desk to watch. “You really did find a giant purple spider
!”
“Wait. Watch the whole thing.”
Dr. Ayers watched the whole recording, his eyes getting wider and more horrified with each passing moment. When the recording finished he covered his face with his hands. “Oh no.”
“I came to the same conclusion.” Kharmadi shut down her computer. “Did you understand anything of what they said?”
“Very little. Very, very little.” He peeked out from the top of his fingers. “Most of the words I didn’t understand, but from what I did, I could tell they weren’t very happy with you.”
“I got that far on my own. What about the giant purple spider?”
“Something, or rather someone, very important to them obviously.”
“And I kidnapped it.”
“And you kidnapped it.”
Kharmadi closed her eyes. “So, now what?”
Dr. Ayers covered his face with his hands again. “First, I’m going to get a translation of everything they said. Maybe that will give us a better idea of exactly what was going on.” He uncovered his face and reached for her computer. “Perhaps when Iol said, ‘No talk,’ what he meant was that he wasn’t going to tell anyone what had happened. So, we are in the clear.” He looked over at Kharmadi. “Or rather, you are.” He pulled the translation program from his computer over to hers, and began translating Iol and Big blue horns’ conversation on the recording. “And, this evening we’ll need to bring this to the administration’s and security’s attention.”
They waited the few moments while the computer worked, then ran the recording again, translated. It had been a simple translation, literal rather than meaningful, and at a more elementary level than an adult Rcyyt would use. One word, “Citi,” was earmarked as a possible proper name, and left in Rcyyt, but noted before the recording replayed. There were many staticy pauses in the translation, indicating an unknown word.
“There,” Iol was saying, “Citi here, told you.”
“Static, static.” Big blue horns’ gaze raked the lab. “Hurt Citi?”
“No. Fine, told you. Open cage, Citi out.” Iol rattled the lock frantically. “Locked cage. Lock unknown. No open.”
“No open, what?” Big blue horns shouted and rattled the lock, nearly moving the cage. “She out! She out!”
“Calm. Calm. Examine, understand lock.” Iol searched the lock, muttering. “No combination pad. No puzzle solution.”
Big blue horns began shouting, and frantically clawing at the door. “Open now! Static, static, static, static. Terran Dr. Kharmadi static, static, examine static! Terrans all static, static! Citi out now.”
“Give time! Calm! Patience!” Iol pushed Big blue horns away from the cage door. Iol ran its hands over the top edges and corners of the cage, while Big blue horns held the end of one tentacle. Iol muttered, “Open somehow.”
“Citi static,” Big blue horns crooned. “Static, static, static. Citi static.” Several tentacles emerged from the cage, and began slithering and twisting over Big blue horn’s arms.
At the sound of a door opening, both Rcyyt stood, whirling around, though Kharmadi herself remained outside the recording.
“Hello.” Kharmadi’s voice had been recorded. “I wasn’t really expecting company this morning.”
“Static you!” Big blue horns lunged nearly off the recording. “Static, static, static, static, static! Captured Citi! Examined! Static! Static, static!”
Iol hung on Big blue horn’s arm. “No! Calm! Terran Dr. Kharmadi understand lock! Open. Citi fine.”
Big blue horns kept shouting. “Static! All scientists, Terrans, static! Citi out now! No touch Citi! Static, static, static, static!”
“What? What’s the matter?” Kharmadi’s voice asked worriedly.
“Static you!” Big blue horns twisted and turned in Iol’s grip watching the movements of Kharmadi off screen. “Citi hurt, you have trouble! Static, static!”
Jangling keys arced into the recording, and Iol caught them with one hand.
“Open lock, Citi out. All fine. Come.” Iol turned Big blue horns back to the cage. In moments the lock was open, and Iol stood, spreading the folds of its loose clothing, hiding Big blue horns and the creature Citi from the off camera Kharmadi. However the recording clearly showed Big blue horns unfastening and half removing its outer toga, and scooping up Citi. As Citi wrapped its tentacles around Big blue horns a fold of Big blue horns’ inner suit opened, and it appeared that the spider-like Citi’s mouth fastened onto a portion of Big blue horns’ chest. Big blue horns cooed, “Everything okay. Calm. Citi home soon.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset anyone. What is the matter?” Kharmadi’s voice said.
Big blue horns rose and fastened its toga.
Kharmadi finally appeared at the very edge of the recording. “Oh-oh. What happened here?”
“Go now.” Iol pushed and directed the unresisting Big blue horns towards the door. “Hurry. Terrans awake soon. Go home village. No one know.”
“Everyone know," Big blue horns said. “Everyone static, static.”
“Village know,” Iol said. “No one discuss. No one static. Static, static, not polite. Rcyyt pretend, Terrans pretend. Tell Terran Dr. Kharmadi.” Iol looked back at Kharmadi, covered its mouth briefly, and said in standard Terran, “No talk.”
The recording ended, leaving only a blank screen.
Dr. Ayers sighed. “I’m not certain that really cleared up any ambiguities.”
Kharmadi nodded ruefully. “I’ll start thinking that perhaps the spider-creatures are their children, but that doesn’t explain the small Rcyyt that are underfoot all over their village, and that play with our children.” She winced and bowed her head. “And I’d really hate to think that I kidnapped one of their children.”
“Not a child. No. I’m fairly certain of that. They all have that pot-bellied look. So everyone of them must have one.” Dr. Ayers flashed through the recording to the portion that showed Big blue horns picking up Citi. He reviewed it in slow motion. “Some sort of symbiotic relationship, obviously. But what function does the spider-creature serve? And is Citi a proper name, for this one creature, or a more generic name for these creatures?”
“And what does ‘No talk’ mean?”
Shaking his head slowly, Dr. Ayers said, “I’d still only be guessing. Something isn’t polite, and they expect their own people to pretend something, and hope we will too. Dare we hope that public discussion is what isn’t polite and that intelligent people are expected to pretend this never happened?”
“Why would intelligent people pretend something didn’t happen?” Kharmadi flashed through to the end of the recording, replaying the last bits of the Rcyyt conversation. “Wouldn’t intelligent people talk things out, work out their differences, and explain what is expected of others?”
“In intelligent Terran society that would be the norm. However there are Terran populations that expect you to know and follow the rules without anyone having to tell you. Who knows where the Rcyyt are on that scale.” Dr. Ayers stood and stretched. “Well, let’s see about getting a better translation of that recording, and set up some meetings with Uljana and her staff, and General Baxter and his staff.” He grinned at Kharmadi. “As bad as this may seem, it actually may end up improving our understanding of the Rcyyt and our relationship with them.”
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