The Ethical Engineer by Harry Harrison Read Free Book Online

food, no matter how unwholesome, and would do
until something better came along.
    "What did you talk about?" Mikah asked, grinding his own portion
between his teeth.
    "Just swapping lies. He thinks we're his slaves and I agreed. But it's
just temporary—" Jason added as anger colored Mikah's face and he
started to climb to his feet. Jason pulled him back down. "This is a
strange planet, you're injured, we have no food or water, and no idea
at all how to survive in this place. The only thing we can do to stay
alive is to go along with what Old Ugly there says. If he wants to
call us slaves, fine—we're slaves."
    "Better to die free than to live in chains!"
    "Will you stop the nonsense. Better to live in chains and learn how to
get rid of them. That way you end up alive-free rather than dead-free,
a much more attractive state. Now shut up and eat. We can't do
anything until you are out of the walking wounded class."
*
    For the rest of the day the line of walkers plodded across the sand
and in addition to helping Mikah, Jason found two of the
krenoj
, the
edible roots. They stopped before dusk and dropped gratefully to the
sand. When the food was divided they received a slightly larger
portion, as evidence perhaps of Jason's attention to the work. Both
men were exhausted and fell asleep as soon as it was dark.
    During the following morning they had their first break from the
walking routine. Their foodsearching always paralleled the unseen sea,
and one slave walked the crest of the dunes that hid the water from
sight. He must have seen something of interest because he leaped down
from the mound and waved both arms wildly. Ch'aka ran heavily to the
dunes and talked with the scout, then booted the man from his
presence.
    Jason watched with growing interest as he unwrapped the bulky package
slung from his back and disclosed an efficient looking crossbow,
cocking it by winding on a built-in crank. This complicated and deadly
piece of machinery seemed very much out of place with the primitive
slave-holding society, and Jason wished that he could get a better
look at the device. Ch'aka fumbled a quarrel from another pouch and
fitted it to the bow. The slaves sat silently on the sand while their
master stalked along the base of the dunes, then wormed his way over
them and out of sight, creeping silently on his stomach. A few minutes
later there was a scream of pain from behind the dunes and all the
slaves jumped to their feet and raced to see. Jason left Mikah where
he lay and was in the first rank of observers that broke over the
hillocks and onto the shore.
    They stopped at the usual distance and shouted compliments about the
quality of the shot and what a mighty hunter Ch'aka was. Jason had to
admit there was a certain truth in the claims. A large, furred
amphibian lay at the water's edge, the fletched end of the crossbow
bolt projecting from its thick neck and a thin stream of blood running
down to mix with the surging waves.
    "Meat! Meat today!"
    "Ch'aka kills the
rosmaro
! Ch'aka is wonderful!"
    "Hail, Ch'aka, great provider," Jason shouted to get into the swing of
things. "When do we eat?"
    The master ignored his slaves, sitting heavily on the dune until he
regained his breath after the stalk. Then after cocking the crossbow
again he stalked over to the beast and with his knife cut out the
quarrel, notching it against the bowstring still dripping with blood.
    "Get wood for fire," he commanded. "You, Opisweni, you use the knife."
    Shuffling backwards Ch'aka sat down on a hillock and pointed the
crossbow at the slave who approached the kill. Ch'aka had left his
knife in the animal and Opisweni pulled it free and began to
methodically flay and butcher the beast. All the time he worked he
carefully kept his back turned to Ch'aka and the aimed bow.
    "A trusting soul, our slave-driver," Jason mumbled to himself as he
joined the others in searching the shore for driftwood. Ch'aka had all
the weapons as well as a constant fear of