Enemy Immortal by Jim Meeks-Johnson

Author:Jim Meeks-Johnson [Meeks-Johnson, Jim]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-04-29T16:00:00+00:00

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When Jade returned to Peapod, an agitated Conrad greeted her at the airlock. "We can do it again." His brainsong whined with distress.

"Are you sure?" Jade wrinkled her forehead. "Quist said he was sure one trip would be enough."

"No, I mean Quist—" Conrad gestured helplessly. "Just come see what I mean."

When they arrived at Engineering, Quist shoved a tuba-like object at Jade.

"What is this?" Jade asked.

"I'm on your team, and I'm helping you," Quist said, "You wanted a large version of the Ambo stunner, and so while you were on the surface, I made you one that is four times bigger

Jade frowned. "I said three or four times as big, not thirty."

"It is four times as big," Quist said. "the original was 30.1 centimeters long, and this one is 120.4 centimeters long.

"And how much heavier?"

Quist still held the tuba out to her. "Obviously, it is sixty-four times as heavy—161.3 kilograms to be precise.

Jade blinked. "I can't carry a gun that big."

Conrad waved his arms. "I told you, Quist. To a human, four times as big means four times the mass, not four times the length. You may as well recycle it."

Quist's brainsong stuttered, then resumed its methodical march in a lower key. He began retreating with the huge device.

"No wait, I'll take it," Jade said. She surged forward in the zero-gee compartment and pulled the massive gun from Quist. "Obviously, this is a piece of artillery, not a handgun. I appreciate your sense of teamwork. Thank you very much for your help, Quist."

"Dissonance," Quist said, tentatively releasing the gun to Jade. "If you are unable to use this device as intended, it would be most efficient to recycle it."

She pulled the gun farther out of Quist's reach. "No, it's even better than I had expected. It'll be an excellent addition to our arsenal."

Quist's brainsong resumed its original pitch and cadence as Jade added the super-sized stun gun to the top of her weapons pallet.

Conrad caught up with Jade. "It was smart of you to accept the stun gun. I can see how you strengthened the teamwork pattern. Maybe the Elliquine were right to put you in charge."

"Thank you." Jade felt flattered. It wasn’t every day a professor said she was smart.

He came up next to her and helped push the pallet toward the shuttle. "You'd make a good cultural xenologist. You're a good observer of societal customs and individual motivations."

"Hmph." Her smile faded. "Too good sometimes. My electrosense lets me recognize common emotions, at least among humans, and lies have a strong electrical signature. A lot of people have trouble accepting that."

Conrad nodded. "We are kindred souls, then. I mean I don’t always fit in, in part because I often see things others do not. I find cultural patterns fascinating—everything from group decision making to political and economic structures, to mating behavior."

His brainsong jingled with his attraction to her, only now it was more than physical. He pointed through Peapod's hull into the starry void. "Hundreds of civilizations. Hundreds of specialized species.

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