"We will be mapping the gates off the new High Forest space," Ruuel said, once everyone was ready. "Additionally, we will see whether Devlin’s enhancements will bring us any closer to relocating Columns, or a reliable path to Hasata. This is still a test situation. Do not push limits."
High Forest space is beautiful. Really. Tall, slender trunks, branches soaring far overhead, silvery leaves drifting down to form a shushing carpet. And, although I suppose someone might have killed them earlier, it doesn’t seem like it’s inhabited by any Ionoth. There’s a ton of gates leading off it, and I think the idea was supposed to be that we document where each of them led, but Auron, who is the strongest Path Sight talent in Fourth Squad, said he had a suspicion of a short line to Unara, and so we went off through a very low gate onto a rocky path winding up a hill (my aching legs!). Just like with First Squad, Ruuel and Sonn go through the gate first as a pair, and the rest of us can’t go through until they’ve signalled us. With the hill space, Ruuel signalled us through straight away. There were things there a lot like wargs, six of them in all, and they looked strong, but they weren’t nearly fast enough. Fourth Squad seems to prefer using close-combat methods.
After Auron found the next gate he was looking for, Fourth paused to survey the hill space and the other gates leading out of it, and Sonn used Ena Manipulation to ensure the gate we’d passed through and the one we were going to pass through were absolutely solid. The next space was a cliff-top beside an angry ocean, and full of weather, grey and pounding wet. That was a quick signal through and then a slog through damp bushes. There were Ionoth there, misty grey horses which ran off as we approached, but though Fourth Squad were very alert, there was nothing that they seemed inclined to slaughter.
The gate Auron took us to was a new type for me. It was as vague and unreal as the horses and you couldn’t really see through it, except in occasional flickers showing the outline of buildings.
"Phasic," Auron said. "I’ve never managed to track through one before." And he gave me this solemn sort of nod which was more successful at making me go red than all Nils' teasing.
Then it was Sonn’s turn, enhancing and frowning at the gate. Phasic gates aren’t steadily aligned, and thus are only open in short bursts. Sonn frowned at it for a short age, nearly collapsing in the process, but looked pleased with herself when she was rewarded with a clear view into Unara’s near-space. Ruuel had Ferus pair with him to go through since Sonn was so clearly drained, and then signalled us through again, out of the downpour.
Leaving Sonn and Auron guarding me, the other four went hunting, tracking down a number of Ionoth in the area. I stood about and dripped and tried to picture the people who owned the apartment we were standing in.
When they were back, Ruuel checked the status of the gate once again, then said: "We’ll retrace now. A good result." I swear, he talks like he’s being charged a dollar a word. But that judicious dollop of approval succeeded in making his whole squad, even me, stand a little straighter.
At least, with Fourth Squad being dauntingly competent, I didn’t have a lot of time to fret about crushes. Other than sending me off to medical afterwards, Ruuel failed to do anything to either make me dislike him or fall at his feet, and I ended up focused on business. I really did like when he said it was a good result, though.
Friday, March 14
Planning an outing
Today while I was swimming I was brought into a meeting channel by Isten Notra. "Just listen," said her invitation text, so that’s what I did, floating slowly about the pool.
There were about twenty people in the channel, most of them people I’d never even seen their names before. But also Maze, Ruuel, Taarel and Selkie.
Someone had been speaking when I joined, but stopped abruptly and said: "Notra–" in a protesting tone.
"Since our young ally’s contribution will be central to this venture, it’s best to keep her abreast of the issues, don’t you agree, Minera?" Isten Notra said, sounding like she was having fun. "Do you wish to speak further, or shall we move on to the question of numbers?"
"Sentimentality mixes badly with survival, Notra," said the one called Minera, but then shut up.
"It can only be a large force," someone else said. "When small forces have been attacked, they’ve been destroyed completely. Larger contingents are rarely without survivors."
The meeting went on for ages, and I’m too tired to write even a tenth of it. They were planning an expedition to Muina to investigate the aether-making, and were trying to work out a way to do it without everyone, particularly me, dying. Especially since one of the things they wanted to investigate was why the aether/Muina/whatever doesn’t hate me. Eventually they decided on four squads – risking both of the exploration squads, which was another argument in itself – with only a small contingent of greensuits. From a few of Selkie’s comments, he thought it likely the Setari would end up protecting the greensuits rather than the other way around.
After I’d told them about the aether they had sent a lightning-quick expedition of greysuits and greensuits to set out a few scanning drones at my village, very carefully timed to try and avoid them all being destroyed, and won themselves lots of nice footage and readings of a moonfall, which were transmitted through today. Now that the Setari have nearly stabilised the situation with Tare’s neighbouring spaces, KOTIS is planning the first extended expedition to Muina in years, with a day-trip excursion in three days, and then another two days before the next moonfall. They’re also searching their satellite scans for any other settlements which have the same circle patterns on the roofs, and have found one already.
When they were done, Isten Notra asked me on a private channel why I hadn’t provided her with any comments on the reports and when I explained that I hadn’t found anything to say told me to always keep the question in mind, and to not be backward in passing on observations during the upcoming expedition.
Afterwards I talked to Maze, but didn’t ask directly about what they’d been discussing before I’d been brought into the meeting. Isten Notra had shown me that they definitely were arguing about my irreplaceability, which I guess also means there’s not yet little copies of me growing in a vat somewhere. She was underlining a point, calling me an ally. I’m lucky she seems to have decided to defend me.
Or maybe Isten Notra just understands that I really would try to leave, no matter how dangerous my jaunts are, if I believed that’s what they were doing. Making Muina safe is a far bigger thing than me being able to increase the strength of a handful of Setari, and I’m willing to help however I can, but just me. Letting them make copies of me, or try to breed little amplifying tools, that would be a moral failure on my part.
That sounds ridiculous and weird. But I know it’s something I couldn’t put up with.
Saturday, March 15
Rain thoughts
The weather outside was finally calm enough that I could go up to the roof today after another morning of being zonked out with aether testing. Tare really is prone to horrible weather so it’s no wonder the Muinans arriving here had such a struggle: constant cyclone-level storms made surface-dwelling almost impossible. It was still windy and spattering occasional raindrops when I went up, but nothing so bad I couldn’t enjoy it.