Cale cursed. "Just finishing up, Tess. I'll be right in. I don't want to be caught out here." He sprayed the last of the fire, and then grabbing the foam tank, he ran awkwardly back to the airlock. By the time he arrived there, he could already make out the features of the leading soldier. He was greatly relieved when the lock door slammed down behind him. He stood for a moment with his eyes closed, trying to regain control of his excitement and his breathing before opening the lock's inner door.
The soldiers were remarkably efficient, considering their background. Their commander sent six men to encircle Cheetah in pairs, with the other six spread out in front of the airlock. The soldiers talked quietly among themselves, but they never relaxed their vigilance. Good troops, Cale decided. They did not wear uniforms, but each of them wore a blue-and-gray tunic over his breastplate. Cale noted that the breastplates were leather, laid in a scale pattern and studded with metal.
"Tess," he said as something occurred to him, "Can you listen in on their conversation? Their language is probably based on Standard, but maybe we can begin putting together a vocabulary of the changes."
"I have been doing so, Cale," Tess replied. "So far, it appears that most of the deviation is in pronunciation, though of course there are new and different words as well. I am attempting to create programming for standard translators, but I suspect you will understand each other."
"Good!" Cale said with a sigh of relief. "I was afraid the deviation might be so bad we'd have to fall back on 'Me Cale. You?'"
Tess' tone was amused. "I suspect you'll have little difficulty, as long as you speak slowly and clearly. It appears there is greater deviation on some of the worlds we have visited."
It was almost two hours later when Tess reported, "A rather strange vehicle is leaving the castle and heading this way."
"Good!" Cale replied. "That should be some courtier sent by the king." He grinned. "Probably one the king thinks won't be missed if something bad happens."
It took over fifteen minutes for the cumbersome vehicle to lumber from the castle to the ship. The thing was huge, considering it had passenger accommodations for only about four. In fact, now, it carried only one passenger. Of course, it also had a crew of three. One seemed occupied with throwing balks of wood into what appeared to be a boiler. A second operated an array of what appeared to be valve wheels. The third was mounted high on the back, apparently steering the rear wheels by a tiller. The front of the thing was decorated by a large figurehead carving of a fanciful monster, belching steam.
"I have been reviewing my files," Tess reported. "I am sure it is powered by steam, though I have not succeeded in locating the engine itself among that assemblage of piping. It is an example of the anomalies we have been discussing. Such a vehicle seems inconsistent with a feudal society. On Old Earth, similar vehicles were not developed until the rise of cities and the early industrial revolution."
"Are you sure, Tess?" Dee asked. "It appears to be just a big pot of water boiling over a wood fire, with the steam captured and used to drive the wheels. The steam is even allowed to escape out the back without being recirculated. It doesn't look very 'advanced' to me."
"But it is, Dee," Cale replied. "You're right about the boiler system, but that's not the hard part. Anyone who's ever watched a teakettle could figure that out. No, the hard part is putting the steam to work. I'd be interested in seeing that thing's engine." He paused. "If they offer us a ride, don't accept! The passengers sit right in front of the boiler. I'd bet those things blow up regularly, and I don't care to be blown up with it!"
"I agree," Tess added. "That man controlling the valves does not even have a pressure gauge to monitor. He probably adjusts his valves based on the amount of steam exiting out the rear. I hypothesize that the vehicle is experimental. It is the only one apparent, and is much too dangerous for general use. I suspect they are trying to impress us."
Cale shook his head. "Well, they could impress me by parking that thing at a respectful distance!"
Actually, they did park it at a respectful distance, apparently to protect it from harm by the occupants of the ship.
The vehicle clanked to a halt in a cloud of steam. They could just make out the wood-thrower now throwing his weight against a lever whose other end pressed on a wheel. The Valve man frantically spun his wheels, and the cloud grew denser. By the time it cleared, the wood handler had dismounted and was throwing one of his chunks of wood in front of a wheel. The driver and the valve man had also dismounted, and were bowing deeply as a man in late middle age descended from the passenger compartment. The man was pudgy and short, and wore the most outlandish garb Cale had ever seen; Robes of dark blue were decorated with a sprinkling of silver and gold stars and comets. A hat with a pointed crown and ridiculously wide brim capped this vision. A mop of graying hair escaped beneath the remarkable hat.
The wood handler and the soldiers joined the others in holding a deep bow as the man strutted toward the ship.
Cale struggled to suppress a grin at the apparition. Dee didn't even try. "Well," Cale said, "I guess that's my cue. Now, Dee, don't get upset if he only talks to me, or if he treats you like a decoration. Primitive societies tend of be paternalistic."
Dee grimaced. "I understand," she said. "So, what's your excuse?"
Cale rolled his eyes as he headed for the airlock. The outer hatch opened just as the man approached it, revealing Cale standing, nodding to his visitor.
Chapter 3
"So," the man began gruffly, "T'empire 'turns!"
Cale was beginning to analyze this phrase when Tess murmured in his ear. "So, The Empire returns."
Cale smiled and shook his head. "The Empire is dead. It was destroyed less than a century after abandoning Jumbo."
The man frowned, apparently analyzing Cale's statement. After a moment his face cleared. "Ah! Of course! You speak like the old ones!" He paused, then resumed slowly and clearly. "I am Hiraf Jennis, Chief Wizard of this domain. I was sent by my sovereign, King Rajo, to greet you and learn of your intentions."
Cale bowed. Taking Hiraf's hint, he spoke slowly and clearly. "Will you come aboard, my lord? We should have comfort and privacy for our discussions."
Hiraf's eyes lit with obvious enthusiasm. Cale deployed the boarding ladder, and Hiraf scrambled up it, cursing his robes.
"Two doors?" Hiraf questioned, and then answered himself. "Of course. For there is no air between the stars."
Cale nodded as they stepped into Cheetah's lounge. "Correct, my lord. I am Cale Rankin, and this is my lady wife, Delilah Rankin, of the world called Faith."
Hiraf's head had been swiveling nonstop since they had entered, but now it stopped as he focused on Dee. He bowed deeply. "An honor, my lady," he said. "The old books talked of women doing such tasks as exploration, but women are so precious to us here that we dare not risk them." He turned to Cale. "And this magnificent vessel is flown by just two?"
Cale smiled. "No, I'm afraid not. We have another crewperson, Tess. I'm afraid she is unable to greet you as she is busy with important duties."
Hiraf's eyebrows rose. "Ah? Two women? Remarkable." He straightened. "And what is it you do here, sire Rankin? Why has a star man returned to Jumbo?"
Cale frowned. "We have come to tell you that, sir. But it will require some explanation. Meanwhile, however, can you tell us how this has happened to Jumbo? We have only the old Empire records, and they end with the Empire's abandonment of Jumbo. We would also like to know why Valhalla seems so much more advanced than the rest of the inhabited areas of Jumbo."