Chapter 18: Merfolk

The Merfolk.

Morphology can only adopt a limited number of forms, so, the Merfolk do look a bit familiar.

Adapting probes for submerged spying isn’t difficult. Drives are gravitic and very small, solely manuevering, insufficient for flight. Non-sentient AI chips are their brains and autopilots as well as communication devices. We didn’t feel a need for probes to surface and re-submerge. A single dive and remain submerged throughout the mission. To retrieve them, an unlatching weight was incorporated, that when released, the probe regained positive buoyancy and floated to the surface. The ability to salvage was quite simply a pickup. The I served as a locator beacon.

By deploying these probes we had our first glimpses of our cohabitants of this planet, which we named Sweet. As in Home Sweet Home, but just the single word Sweet.

When we first observed the citizens of the sea bottom city I’d found, we dismissed them as mindless bottom feeders. We speculated if they might be safe and possibly delicious to eat. Resembling a hybrid between a lobster and a squid, we misidentified them as potentially local seafood.

Then we observed them as a maintenance team with a leader. We still want to capture one, but no longer intend to cook it. Not immediately anyway.

Capturing one was very easy. It became curious about one of our probes and rode it to the surface when we slipped the sinker weight.

Not knowing if it can live in air, we immediately dropped it in a bucket of water when we first grabbed it. Nearly as fast, it leaped out again. Or crawled our with it’s tentacles so fast it seemed to leap out.

Communications are going to be difficult.

Not only does it have a twirly writhing mass of tentacles but four armored legs, swimmers and a broad tail. The tentacles are not needed for dragging it’s body about, it walks. My reasoning is, it’s form is ideally suited to gesticulate.

Making a sweeping courtly bow first, I introduce myself. Tapping my chest I say. “IRON.” The creature mimics me perfectly. “IRON.”

Does it understand, that’s my name? Pointing at the creature first, I then exaggerate a shrug.

It imitates the shrug, then blows a bubble which pops followed by a squeak. I try duplicating even the bubble, but I’m no mimic.

The creature says “IRON” then blows the bubble with a pop squeak again.

“Popsqueak?”

It is a very patient creature and repeats the bubble popsqueak, so I modify as,

“Pipsqueak.”

It becomes very agitated. Then touches my chest with a tentacle and says “IRON”, then indicates itself with a tentacle and says, without a bubble, “Pipsqueak.”

That is how my friendship with Pipsqueak began.

We began to trade. Milly and I were interested in starting crabs in the weed beds lining the brackish rivers. They were introduced very sucessfully. When I offered a crab to Pipsqueak the first time, he ate everything including the shell and demanded more. The popularity and demand for crabs exceeded production for months.

What did we get? Electricity. Pipsqueaks folk would run a submerged cable up onto the land wherever we wished, and they provided the cable.

Things were hunkydory until Pipsqueaks city was raided by a more remote city. Citizens were killed and a number carted away as slaves I suppose. Pipsqueak expects us to fight alongside his folk as allies.

That is a difficult decision.

Hope you’re enjoying.

Yob