Chapter 7

A call, Tuesday morning Terran standard time. ‘Indenture.com’ to an, electronically cloaked, recipient.

“It went well Sir”
“Any life signs”
“No Sir”
“Too bad, Isn’t it.”

“Ahh, yes, yes Sir, of course”
“Let me know if any life signs come trough”
“I think I can promise you that none has been forwarded so far”
“Good good, Goodbye”
“Yes Sir, bye”

He leaned back in his chair, smiling softly to himself as he ordered “Coffee Jena, make it snappy. And brandy, the old one. We have something to celebrate.”

Janelle took a deep breath as she looked around the camp. To her it seemed as if it was just a moment ago her world had been set upside down. Everything around her felt so strangely familiar, from the sweet smell of the grass to the intensively blue pool of water, waiting for her at the bottom of the hill. But nothing was normal anymore, and both she and Jeff knew it.

“Royal, got any further with those flowers?” She asked

“No Ma’am”

“Why” Damn that suit she thought, she always seemed to have to draw answers out of it.

“Sorry Ma’am, they’ve changed”

“They can’t change. Can they?”

“Normally, no Ma’am”

Royal and the old suit was in silent but furious communication as she talked to it. And Jeff’s suit was once again very near to a reset as it tried to assimilate how genetic material taken from one and the same flower could change over just a couple of days.

‘it’s not possible’ it said

‘An anomaly dear colleague” Royal agreed ‘But definetly possible, as we each took samples of the same specimen, then analyzed, before and after. Comparing our results’

“I feel I need a reset’

‘No you don’t. You need to accept’

As Janelle looked she could see Jeff laying, restlessly studying the sky. “What are you looking at?’ she asked

“Nothing” he said “Just wondering why the constellations change”

“Well, there is nothing to see Jeff, it’s the middle of the day”

They still found it difficult to adapt to the long days. The ship had held Standard Terran time, and their body’s still had that rhythm in them, no matter how long they had spent in their suits. But that was only a question of time and Janelle, even if now Jeff didn’t, knew it.

“Want to go down to the pool?” she asked “Wonder if it comes from the lake?

“It’s just a goddamned pool” said Jeff “not a lake.”

“No stupid, I mean if the water in it comes from the lake.”

“Oh, yea maybe? Ask Royal.”

“Does it Royal?”

“Sorry Ma’am, I don’t know. And I would advise you both to stay here for the moment.”

Janelle studied Royal thoughtfully. It still seemed unwilling to share whatever it was it found so unsettling. And the other suit had stood there as frozen for a long time.

“It’s not resetting again, is it?”

“Ehr...” Royal turned around “Would you like me to take a sample of the pool before you go down Ma’am?”