Yuen-Mong's Revenge by Gian Bordin Read Free Book Online

said: "I am going to prepare breakfast now, and you should also
wash yourself thoroughly with soap. You stink."
            His resentment was instant. "Who are you to tell me when to wash?
I stink because you made me run for hours yesterday."
            "The smell is not of exertion, but of fear," she explained and added
in a conciliatory tone: "The water is pleasant and you will feel better
afterward." She turned away and started to prepare two bowls of muesli,
putting extra nuts and sweetberries into his, and filled two mugs with
cold bark tea. She heard him mutter, but then saw him go to the back of
the cave. She took the two bowls and mugs outside onto the balcony,
waiting for him to join her, listening to the murmurs around her.
          "Feel better?" she asked when he came, looking and smelling clean,
except for the dark stubble around his chin and lower cheeks.
          "Yes," he answered reluctantly.
          "This mash is very nutritious, but tastes a bit bland. If you chew it
thoroughly, you will get the full flavor of the sweetberries."
            He took a mouthful and turned up his nose, but continued chewing,
his face relaxing slowly.
          "I insist that you to take me back to my craft after this."
            Does he not listen? "Believe me, on this world, survival must always
be up and foremost on your mind and that includes gathering food and
fuel. I am already a day late, and with you here we need more. It cannot
be delayed any longer. So, as I already told you, today we do that." She
sensed his resistance building up. "No, don’t interrupt. I know you do not
believe me and think that you will quickly repair your shuttle, but no
electronics work in this world. You might as well resign yourself to the
fact that you will be stuck here, possibly for ever. So I see no reason why
I should put our survival at risk for a project that is doomed from the
outset. We may be able to visit your shuttle tomorrow to bring back any
useful things."
            "I don’t think you even know what you’re talking about. What do you
know about physics and electronics? You’ve not even experienced electricity. So don’t talk to me anymore about your theory, or your father’s
theory. I probably could have taught your father a lot about electronics
and advanced AI systems too."
            "Probably, but only if you can get them working. Today we stay near
here." Her tone had a finality that did not admit objections.
          "OK, but tomorrow you’ll take me there." It was said vehemently.
          "Maybe."
            "What do you mean, maybe?"
            "On this world, you let your life be guided by what is most likely to
let you see another day."
            He kept a sullen silence for the rest of the meal, but she noticed that
he actually chewed the food thoroughly — a sign that he might be able
and willing to learn.
     
    * * *
     
    Atun seemed much amused when he saw the first skin colored timoru
sausages that grew in abundance on low bushes along the coast a
kilometer north of the cave. He took one of the fruits and asked: "Why
do you collect so many? What are they for?"
            He is back to asking two questions at the same time, she mused.
"They are the basis for the mash we had for breakfast and the bread you
ate yesterday."
            "Do they taste better fresh?" He broke one apart and was just going
to take a bite from the pulp.
          "Don’t!" she cried. "They are poisonous like this."
            He threw the pieces away and exclaimed: "But we ate that stuff."
            "I have to leach the pulp first for four days in a lime solution, wash it
afterward in fresh water several times, and then ferment it. That removes
the poisons and breaks down the fibers for easier digestion."
            "How did you find that out?"
            "My mother did. She was a chemist and she taught me."
            "Are they also poisonous to