Chapter 49

Our late arrival and then late lunch made supper come later too and it was also on the light side. For once it didn't matter to me since I was still mostly full from lunch. Even Kita and Chiqa didn't eat much.

After I put the two of them in bed for the night, hopefully, we sat around the table talking and still going over some of the things we'd talked about over lunch. We didn't get anything ironed out either. Mostly we just went over things again and came up with no real answers and the same vexing questions.

The next morning Rose had something on her mind and even though breakfast was great and feeding Kita and Chiqa was another real treat Rose looked antsy the whole time though she tried to hide it. After I had our tow cutest cuties in the furs for their next nap I returned to the table to see if I could find out what had her fretting.

It took time and patience, but finally she settled down a little, sat down for a cup of coffee, and spilled the beans.

"I can't shake the feeling we need to find a good way down onto the river valley's level on the east side. Surely there is a way somewhere. I've even quizzed Juko and he doesn't know of a path and they lived east of here, but up on the plateau."

"If it has you hot and bothered George and I will just have to saddle up and find a way. We know we can get across the river on horseback, but we don't even have to do that to check for a way up or down. We can ride to the ramp/bridge down for the west side and then travel around the edge of the plateau and look down for a path. There has to be a way somewhere and it has to start from the edge of the plateau."

"But will it be safe? The two of you can't just take off alone to go scouting around on the plateau, and if you go horseback you won't have a radio to talk to me and let me know what's going on," Rose said.

"We'll take the skidder too too then and maybe some of the girls will come with me. Hey, why don't you come along?"

"I'd like to, but I'm expecting Sigfried to contact me within a day or two. It's getting near the time they'll be back with more test subjects."

"How can he get hold of you? The CBs won't reach from orbit will they?"

"Sigfried said they could possibly, but he said it was too chancy. He has something set up for us to communicate between the ship and your original computer. It's supposed to be text messages and he said Trillian would pop open down here when he sent the first message."

"I'm sorry, but I can't understand it. How can he get contact the computer from space without any type of antenna? It seems to me the radio would be a lot easier even if it is just a CB," I said.

"I don't know the details, but I do know it has something to do with the antenna. A couple of those wires from the rotator are for something in the amplifier and somehow it sends a wireless signal to your computer. It sounded complicated to me and I sure hope it works. I guess if it doesn't he can try the radio."

"Who knows, it might be simple for him. I sure don't know shit about it so I guess we'll have to hope he knows as much as he thinks he does.

"I guess I'll ask Layta, Leita, Keeta, and Chalta to go with me then. I'll go talk to George about it and see what he thinks."

I found George and his women in the garage. He and one of Goondoe's archery instructors were working with George's women, showing them about the bows and teaching them how to use them.

Actually they were past the show and tell part. George's women Zeeta, Zaata, Meita, Taeta, and Swilea were practicing and Zeeta's daughter Cheela was right with them. George was watching the practice, but mostly he was entertaining Mela, Meita's daughter, and Suitea, Taeta's daughter.

After I walked up I helped him play with the two cuties until the arrows quit flying for a minute and then I asked if he thought he was ready for a little riding up on the plateau.

Of course I had a little explaining to do and naturally they all listened. When the pow wow was over Zaata, Zeeta, Swilea, and Cheela were going with us while Meita and Taeta were staying home to take care of their younguns. We decided tomorrow morning was early enough to leave.

My next job was catching horses for riding and also two to pull travois to carry our things and two spares for just in case type fuckups. After I had them caught and hobbled out in front of the cave I set to work on two travois. I made larger ones this time and put a couple of the large pneumatic casters on the trailing end.

Of course as any normal man would have done I'd neglected to talk to my women about going along. When I made it back into the cave for lunch Rose had taken care of it for me, but I found out Talila was also going along. After lunch my bunch concentrated on gathering and packing food and equipment while Geroge spent the afternoon on ridig lessons for his group.

By suppertime we were set and Rose made sure we all got a big meal. I'm sure George's women did the same for his bunch. After a little extra time spent playing with Kita and Chiqa and getting them in bed and asleep I slipped into the furs with my women and played with them.

The women had always mostly taken care of the order of the fucking and tonight I found Rose at the head of the line, so to speak, and all those not going tomorrow were next. With nearly superhuman dedication to duty I worked my way through the lineup even if it did take hours. I live to serve.

Even though they didn't exactly put me away wet the night before when I made it to the table for breakfast I knew I wasn't at my best. Kita and Chiqa made up for a lot of it with smiling faces and lots of grins and giggles. Of course Rose had let all the others in on the way to get me going and there was plenty of coffee, bearsign, bacon, toast, biscuits, and grits. They basically fed me into a better mood. It wasn't a perfect solution, but what the hell? I could live with it.