Dunc walks through the open entrance to the Ship-Mother's office.

  "What's that smell? Did something die in here?"

  I increase the power of the ventilation by another tenth. The filters register the presence of organic molecules, but in decreasing number. Evidently the pungency is greater than I had assumed. Or perhaps Dunc is simply unused to the fragrant aroma. Eva has yet to complain, though in truth she is breathing very shallowly.

  "Did you drop rancid squivers under your chair or something? It wasn't there yesterday," he complains.

  "Funny, Dunc," replies Eva in a tired voice. "You should have been here when that thing was in here." She makes a rude sound with her throat before continuing. "Thank you for trying with the bittersprig, Denn."

  "Is that what that is? Huh, and I thought it was red sauce."

  "Enough."

  "Fine. Whatever," he declares, raising both hands palm out. "I'm here cause we've got a big problem planet side. The armed escorts are detaining your researchers with unnecessary biohazard procedures."

  "Gau shit. I need to get the core back from them, for a while. A few days at most, I hope."

  "That might not happen," Dunc says, scratching at his nose. "Why do you need a power core, anyway?"

  "To replace me, I assume."

  "That's right," agrees Eva. She runs one slim hand through her thick crest. "He and I are going on a little trip tomorrow. We're going to go talk to a member of their ruling caste. I need you to get together a few power cells to take down, as many as you can find. If the reports I've gotten are accurate, we might be able to keep the artifact operating with them, at least for the short term."

  Clearly displeased with having to ignore what to him is the more pressing crisis, Dunc nevertheless nods and leaves the office in search of industrial power cells. In order to help with potential shortages this might cause I authorize production of hundreds of the devices. At the same time, I also add construction of another power bank to the schedule. The latter will take some days to complete, but there will be new power cells charging before the end of the shift.

  "You're assuming that you can get access to the artifact. What if El and his squad won't let your people back inside?"

  A tight smile appears on her face. She reaches for a comm tablet sitting next to her chair and activates it before answering. "Grand Matron Bell should be interested in how her people are behaving. I'm letting her know right now. By the time the batteries get there, there should be a different group guarding our team.

  "If I manage it, we might even get to send a few Tserri down. Do you think Donna and Skint would keep their claws off of each other long enough to get any work done if we sent them to oversee operations in person?"

  I didn't realize the two were fighting. I hope neither are seriously injured. Putting concerns for my friends aside, I think I can imagine what plans Eva has in her mind.

  The Grand Matron will have to make some concessions for the poor behavior of those under her command. Leveraging that concession to allow Tserri on planet, in small numbers I assume, would go a long way towards soothing tensions between the two peoples. Proving that the four armed beings can work peacefully alongside their gray skinned neighbors will take a long time and great effort. Like the tide slowly eating away at a sea facing cliff, Eva plans to break down the antipathy the people in her charge face with many tiny acts.

  Battle against the endless hordes of the Southern Tribals sounds preferable to me.

  "Right, where did we leave that travel unit?"

  "I believe the device in question has been claimed by the church," I inform her. I don't mention that they have a receipt and the sale is registered in our system. "I don't know why they wanted it, though." None of them can use it.

  She makes a rude noise drops her tablet onto her desk. Eva stands and steps down from the short platform, then walks around her desk. I think she intends to go get the travel case herself!

  The look on her face is one of determination. "If I have to face whatever a Duv is, I'm doing it with you in a state where you can be of use to me," she confesses. It's slightly upsetting to know that she values my opinion so highly.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  She exits her office, startling the flock of administrators milling about in the hallways connecting the command center. Curious office workers cease their murmured conversations to peak covertly at their leader. Desra runs up to her from the crowd clutching tablets in two of her claws.

  "Good, you can come with me," declares the Ship-Mother without breaking stride.

  The silver furred administrator follows in her wake stammering out half formed apologies and explanations to those left behind. She might actually be of some help, now that I think of it. The authorization for the sale bears Desra's command codes.

  Along with her assistant, two guards join the procession: young Jetan and a more experienced female officer. During the long walk Eva attempts to explain to Desra. She gives up explaining when Desra admits to knowledge of the location of the device.

  "We split the money," she explains. "I used my share to buy a magic loom."

  "They aren't magic and you know that," Eva says with exasperation.

  "Yeah, but the real name is stupid," admits Desra with a complex shrug.

  She isn't wrong. Automated fiber processing and assembly extruder, while accurate enough, takes entirely too long to say. Hers is a fairly advanced design that can transform raw plant matter into quite fine cloth almost as quickly as she can feed it in. The range of patterns is limited, but the gadget is capable of some very nice weaves.

  Desra continues her narration. "Rumor has it that it's being kept at the casino for now. There's supposed to be some kind of gambling tournament tonight. They're giving away the relic as part of the prize for winning." She wrings her lower claws together as she speaks, though whether in excitement at the prospect or dread of how her friend will take it I do not know.

  Eva halts mid-step. She puts one hand over her face and takes several calming breaths before turning to address the waiting Tserri administrator.

  "Then we'll win the thing," she declares, lowering her hand. "Desra, you take one of the skulls and go fetch Mos Denn. We can run on reserve long enough to get the case back."

  I wait until Desra runs off on her errand. While the remaining guard is distracted by a mysterious audio failure in his suit I ask, "Are you planning on cheating, Ship-Mother?"

  "No, Mos," she answers with a wry grin. "I'm depending on help from the spirits. Just like every gambler prays for."

  Others might not agree with that assessment, but the church just might. As it's for my own preservation, I find that I cannot justify arguing her out of this decision. Besides, I could use more credits. I estimate that the Red Glow's Supply-Chief will be noticing the discrepancy in their inventory soon enough and the amount I have currently is but a tiny fraction of the debt.

  "Very well, but I expect to share your winnings If I'm really the one earning the credits."

  She only pretends to think for a moment before agreeing. She insists on receiving the larger share, however. Three eighths of the prize money should still be a significant amount.

  "I do have a question, though. Why did you agree to sell it in the first place? You were so proud of it when Gelly carried you home in it."

  "Because, as much as I enjoyed the immediacy of having something like a body again," I explain, thinking it out myself. "I realized that Nuhst gave me all the senses that I needed, if I were just to learn to use them. That left only communication as the last useful function of the device."

  "Hard to talk without a mouth," agrees the Ship-Mother. "And?"

  "I've been learning the languages of your people and the Tserri as well as smugglers' code. Are you familiar with it?"

  She nods. "After Yosip's close call, I decided I needed to know it."

  "Agreed. Therefore, if we needed to present ourselves to the Duv, I could still communicate with you to a functional degree."

  She nods again. "Having the case would still be safer, but it's good to know that we don't have to depend on it."

  "Are we still going to the casino?"

  Eva inhales deeply, then lets it out as a slow sigh. "Yeah, I think so. Even if we can do without the case, I still need to put on a good show. Otherwise the Tserri could riot again if you disappear without preforming some miracle for them."

  I don't think they would riot, but her argument is not without merit. The chance to participate in a story that they'll be telling their children for many long years would make the Tserri much more likely to be charitable.

  These thoughts fill my mind as Desra's delicate claws remove me from my alcove in the wall. She holds me up to the lights, examining me closely in private before stuffing me unceremoniously into her belt pouch. A good idea on her part, I must admit; the station residents are sure to react loudly if they see me away from my post. That would spoil Eva's plan.

  With my expanded awareness I can watch despite being inside the small bag. Once simple fabric would have thwarted my sight, but now I can sense the energy flowing within a radius that encompasses the entire office.

  She carries me out of the room and rejoins her escort. The two of them hurry to rejoin the Ship-Mother who no doubt is still marching to her target.

  They find her filling out the registration forms for tournament entry, surrounded by curious onlookers. Eva looks up from the tablet she's entering information into to smile at Desra before resuming her task. Once Eva finishes, Desra removes the pouch from her side and exchanges it for Eva's.

  Eva then carries me into a side room, leaving the others in the main lobby of the casino. There she is to wait with the other entrants into the tournament. The small room is crowded with over twenty bodies inside.

  Her entrance causes a stir among them. Rich tourists and skilled locals alike look upon the Ship-Mother with shocked expressions. They come from many professions and are here for their own reasons. It is almost a shame that none of them will be claiming the prize that they all are here for.

  Some of the tourists seem amused, but the locals much less so. Some of the Tserri make comments about a rigged system while others whisper prayers to themselves. One Tserri even loudly declares that he won't compete against her and demands his entry fee back. The others part to let him out.

  The Ship-Mother quietly takes a seat in the small room. The others can mutter whatever they like. Eva maintains the dignity of a ruler waiting to hear her next petitioner, ignoring the many looks she receives.