“Beryllium bronze,” Edmund said as Bast passed out the lobster. Jason ensured that they were passed out to family groups but most of them simply opened up the shells and tore out the meat ravenously.
“Do you want some?” Bruce asked as Pete started handing out the thick steaks of tuna.
“We ate,” Herzer said. “Grouper and hogfish that the dragons caught.”
Pete had set aside a large fillet from the first fish and was starting on the second.
“Could you section that up, Herzer?” Pete asked. “It’s for the delphinos.”
“Sure,” Herzer replied. His knife was of stainless steel, issued for the mission, and much smaller than the one Pete was using. But it sufficed to chunk up the tuna, if somewhat messily. When he had the meat cut up he looked at the chunks and realized that he had no way to move them.
“Here, let me help you,” a mer-maid said. She had long, dark hair that was black in the pale phosphorescence and was slimmer than normal in what was generally a hefty group, with high, firm breasts, a nice smile and a tail that was apparently bright blue. What was strangest was that she had a moray eel twined around her neck like a collar. She held out a mesh bag so that he could load the chunks of meat into it. “I’m Elayna.”
“Herzer Herrick,” Herzer said, acutely conscious as her breast innocently brushed his arm, of the comment Bast had made about nakedness. Not to mention the fact that Bast, who was one of the most dangerous individuals he had ever met, was no more than an arm’s length from him. But he had been celibate for an awfully long time.
“Come on,” the girl said, picking up the basket. “The delphinos are usually down at the tip of the reef.”
He followed her into the darkness and as they neared what he felt was deeper water he saw a group of shadows up near the surface.
“That’s them,” Elayna said. “The delphinos are really strange; as close to aliens as we’ll ever find. We work together, but they keep a separate society from us.”
“How do you ‘work together’?” Herzer asked as they neared the group.
“They herd fish to us and we try to catch it in nets,” the mer-girl said. “Try, I say, because our nets are really lousy.”
“Fish smell,” one of the delphinos blatted. He had been floating at the surface but now dove, followed by the rest of the pod.
Herzer felt more than heard a wave of sound cross him and he knew he was being sized up by the delphino. While he’d seen the occasional mer, this was the first delphino he’d seen in the flesh and was surprised by the size of the being.
“Herzer, this is Herman the pod leader,” Elayna said. “Herman, Herzer Herrick. He and some friends brought tuna.”
“Good is,” Herman said. “Much is. Good hunting us, some take. Most take back, need not.”
“Thank you, Herman,” Elayna replied. “Jason didn’t get much today so we need it.”
“Know,” Herman said. As she opened the bag he pulled pieces out and flipped them dexterously to pod members in some pattern unclear to Herzer. He stopped when only half the bag was gone and flipped his nose at Elayna. “Back take. Hunt tomorrow.”
“Herman,” Herzer said, diffidently. “I think that there might be a way to capture the big pelagics if you, the mer and the dragons worked together. It might not work at first, but I think we can figure it out.”
Herman paused and Herzer felt another of those ripples of sonar run across him. He wondered what it would look like, what he would look like, to a delphino.
“Good is,” Herman said. “Try will. Morrow?”
“I’ll see,” Herzer temporized. “Hopefully.”
“Jason see,” Herman said. “Breathe must. Morrow.”
“Morrow,” Herzer said as the delphino floated back to the surface to breathe.
“What’s this idea you have?” Elayna asked as they headed back to town.
“I’m not sure of the particulars,” Herzer said. “I need to talk to Pete and Jason.” He paused as a shudder passed through his body.
“Cold?” Elayna asked.
“Very,” Herzer admitted. “But I’ll be okay.”
“Maybe, maybe not,” Elayna said in a concerned voice. “Hypothermia is no joke, and there’s nowhere to warm up. I get that way sometimes, too. But we have a better heat regulation system than landies.” She reached into the bag and extracted a chunk of tuna, biting into it as she swam. “Of course, it also requires more energy, so we have to eat stuff more than landies. And tuna’s the best; lots of fat.”
“I noticed that you’re… heavier than most landsmen,” Herzer said.
“You can say fat,” Elayna said with a laugh as she fed some small pieces to the moray. “But the fat’s really just a reservoir for us. And we’ve been losing a lot of weight lately; I know I have. With the way that we push water through our gills, fat doesn’t help with the cold. Eating fat does, though,” she added, taking another bite. “Want some?”
“No, I ate up on the surface,” he said. He didn’t add that cold, seawater-flavored tuna was not his idea of an appetizing meal.
They’d reached the town square and she spread the tuna around to the still hungry group, taking a few pieces for herself.
“Having fun?” Bast said, swimming up behind them.
“Uh,” Herzer replied, brilliantly.
“Yes, we are,” Elayna said. “And I haven’t thanked you for the tuna.”
“You’re welcome,” Bast said, smiling at her. “I wonder, were you going to ask Herzer if he’d seen the feeding stations?”
“Uh,” Herzer said again.
“As a matter of fact, yes,” Elayna said with a toothy smile. “Is that a problem?”
“No,” Bast said, matter-of-factly. “Long celibate he has been; go take the edge off. He’s good for more than once a night.” She smiled at the girl and flipped off into the darkness.
“Uhm…” Herzer said.
Elayna just looked at him and batted her eyes. “Care to go look at the feeding stations, Lieutenant Herrick?” she asked.
Without a word he took her hand and followed her across the night-dark reef.
“Well, look what the sea tossed up,” Rachel said as Herzer strode down the bluff from the lighthouse. She was squatting by the remains of the campfire adding driftwood to the coals. “Have a nice night?”
The wind had died overnight and backed around easterly. The sky was clear and the dawn sun was just starting to lift the remnants of early morning fog. The wyverns were awake and starting to mewl with hunger.
“Great, thanks,” Herzer said, setting down a bucket of water from the spring across the island. “Is there any breakfast? I’m starved.”
“Well, you have your choice of fish and sea plum or sea plum and fish,” Rachel said. “And I’m not surprised you’re hungry. I’m surprised you can stand.”
“Herzer has the constitution of a bull,” Bast said, following him down the bluff. “And other things like a bull, come to think of it.”
“Oh, God,” Herzer muttered. “It’s going to be one of those mornings, isn’t it?”
“You have only yourself to blame,” Rachel replied with a sniff.
“Not if you’d make me an honest man,” he retorted, then shrugged. “So I’m having fun. It’s not interfering with the mission.”
“Fooling around with Bruce’s granddaughter isn’t interfering with the mission?” Rachel asked.
“His granddaughter?” Herzer groaned. “Oh, hell.”
“Yes, his granddaughter,” Edmund said, coming up and squatting by the coals. “It’s going to be a hot one today,” he added, looking at the sky. “But don’t worry about it, Herzer, we’ve got much worse problems. Bruce had word that New Destiny is sending a diplomatic mission as well.”