Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 75388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
“Oh?” I’m not seeing where I factor in with this.
“Yeah, I noticed last time that things weren’t adding up when I’d ask the computer questions, and the more I sit and think about it, the more I’m worried that there’s something wrong with it.” She looks at her mate, then back to me. “I worry the data’s corrupted and I’m trying to explain that to them, and no one’s grasping it.”
“I’m no computer genius myself, but I ran into that problem before on my laptop. You think it has a virus? How did it get a virus if it’s been crashed here?’
“I don’t know if it’s a virus, but…things don’t make sense. It’s a computer, so it’s supposed to relay nothing but facts, but I keep finding discrepancies. Like…okay. You know how long the sa-khui have been here, right?”
“Um. Two hundred something years right?” I seem to recall someone telling me about that.
“Two hundred eighty-nine years.” She jiggles her baby on her hip. “That’s what it says every time you ask it. But when I talk to the tribe, it doesn’t make sense. Maylak says the oldest in the tribe is Vadren.”
The healer inclines her head. “He has seen one hundred and sixty-two brutal seasons.”
“Wow, that’s pretty crusty.”
“It gets weirder. I was thinking about that, right? So I went to talk to Vadren, and he said his father lived to be a hundred and fifty seasons. And his father before him was about the same.”
“Uh, I’m no mathematician, but that doesn’t add up.”
“Right! And he says that no one has ever had any technology for as long as he remembers. He learned to spear hunt, and his father learned to spear hunt from his father. If his dad was a kid around the time of the crash, wouldn’t he remember something?”
I shrug. “I guess? Maybe they’re off-the-grid types and decided to go back to nature when they landed here permanently?”
“I was wondering about that, but then I kept thinking about it, and it bothers me.” There’s distress on her freckled face. Her baby grabs a fistful of her orange hair and tugs, and Harlow absently tugs his hand free. “I know I’ve had a few instances where I’d get a schematic from the computer and parts would be missing or seem incorrect, and I thought it was me. But now I’m wondering if there’s corruption in the system somewhere. And I’m worried because I don’t know if it’s safe to use for the language capabilities. What if it beams a laser into someone’s brain and fries them when it’s supposed to be teaching them sign language?”
Yikes. “Yeah, that doesn’t sound good.”
“So would you check it out? Or do you think it’s just me looking for things to do?” She casts a worried look to her mate.
“No, I think if you want to go check it out, it can’t hurt, right?” Plus, I’m selfish. Only half the tribe has the sign language so far, and I want my sister to be able to communicate with everyone. She’s worked really hard to teach the computer her ‘hand words,’ as the others say, and I don’t want her to be hampered by an inability to communicate. Then again, I also don’t want someone’s brains turned to goo just because they’re trying to learn how to talk to my sister.
“I am worried,” Maylak says in her low, gentle voice. “I feel you should stay here, with the tribe.”
At this, Rukh scowls. “I will watch my mate. I protect her.”
“It is not that,” Maylak continues. “It is…I just worry. I feel…” She sighs. “Perhaps it is just a healer worrying over nothing.”
“We make this trip all the time. We’ll be fine,” Harlow assures her.
Maylak nods, but doesn’t seem convinced. “Just be cautious.”
Harlow casts a smile in my direction and then looks at Asha. “Did either of you want to go with us?”
“Oh, I’m, um, busy.” I smile brightly and hope they don’t ask too many questions about that. “Got a lot on my plate.”
“Gathering all the unmated males close?” Asha says in a teasing voice.
I scowl at her. “Waiting for my sister to come back?”
She simply smiles, unbothered by my pissiness.
Maylak, Rukh and Harlow start to talk again, and I edge backward, trying to extricate myself from the conversation. I glance out of the cave, hoping to see a familiar figure on the horizon, but it’s empty.
“Looking for someone?” Asha’s voice is amused as she comes to stand at my side. In her arms, the little girl sucks her thumb and watches me with big, glowing eyes. Asha’s smile returns. “One hunter in particular, perhaps?”
“Shut up.” I scan the outdoors again. “You haven’t seen him today, have you?”
“I have not. Perhaps he is bothered by all the males you are attracting, given that you do not wish to take him to your furs permanently.”