"Stupid antigrav," Eliot grumbled as he stormed back to the Jellicle settlement, "stupid conductors, stupid booster rockets, STUPID SHIP!!"
"I tell ya, Eliot, there's no two ways about it," Jabez said peevishly. "We're going to have to send out a distress signal. We just don't have enough spare parts to fix her ourselves."
"Did I do something wrong?" asked Admeetus, somewhat nonplussed. He didn't understand the techno-babble; all he could tell was that Eliot was upset about something.
"Oh no," Pavel quickly assured him as they jogged to keep up with Eliot. "El's just upset because fixing his space ship is turning out to be tougher than he thought it would be."
Eliot stopped suddenly and turned to launch another volley of complaints at his companions. "The bloody gravinetic conductors are totally fried, and I can't get the damn booster rockets to work! It's not fair!!!"
"Not--so--loud!" Admeetus growled through his teeth.
Apprehension flickered across Eliot's face as he looked around for pollicles or other fearsome beasts he may have disturbed. Pavel took the opportunity to point out (quietly), "Not all the conductors are fried, just a couple. And we won't really need the booster rockets after we get out of the atmosphere."
"You mean 'if', don't you?" Jabez put in cynically. Eliot just hmmphed and continued toward the settlement.
"Eliot, there's nothing wrong with the comm array," Pavel continued in his "look on the bright side" vein. "Why don't we send a scrambled message to Jorath or…or my brothers or…somebody who could come help us."
"I don't think Jorath or any of our other associates should know about Coricum," Eliot said darkly.
"Eliot, why are you so determined to protect this pathetic little planet?" Jabez finally exploded. "Someone else is going to discover it eventually and it'll probably be the Ungai. This is their territory after all."
"I just don't want to be the one who makes the introduction," Eliot muttered disconsolately.
They came into the feasting hall and Admeetus went over to join Bombalurina. "You've become attached to the Terran kitten, Admeetus," she observed, rubbing amorously against her mate.
Admeetus knew she meant Eliot, who was shorter than his two friends by at least 10 centimeters. "He's an impetuous creature who needs protecting," the grey and white hunter commented. "I have helped to save his life twice so far."
Bombalurina smiled and nuzzled Admeetus' face. "I wonder how he'll survive without you when he leaves."
Unaware of this exchange, Eliot sat in a corner of the hall sulking. There must be some way to repair the Phantom without calling for help, he thought. If I send out a distress signal, the Ungai will come, pirate my cargo, rape the planet, and I'll be lucky to get away with my ship. Or the Unlai will come and will eventually tell their allies about this little gem of a planet. Of course, if I call on Jorath for help, I'll get away with my money, but he'll be sure to tell someone about Coricum's location, and then it's only a matter of time before somebody decides to try and exploit it.
Eliot was startled out of this gloomy line of thought when Vyktorea sat down beside him and put some food in front of him. He gave her a weak smile and nibbled at a cut of meat.
They ate quietly for a while then Vyktorea said, "I saw you flying in your space ship today."
"Huh? Oh, yeah," Eliot muttered.
He had done a test run in the Phantom to see if he could get high enough with the damaged antigrav to where the booster rockets could push her up out of the atmosphere. It hadn't worked.
"Would you please take me up in your space ship, Eliot?" Vyktorea begged. "I would love to go up and touch the stars! Maybe we could even see the Heaviside Layer!"
"The what?" Eliot asked, not sure he'd heard her right.
"The Heaviside Layer," Vyktorea repeated. "That's where we go when we die."
"Oh, you mean heaven," Eliot said. "No, you can't see that in space."
"But why not?" Vyktorea exclaimed.
"Because it's not up there," Eliot said without thinking.
"It is, too!" Vyktorea cried. "The Heaviside Layer is up in the stars somewhere, and we will all go there some day, if we are worthy, and live in the stars."
"But…" Eliot thought fast; he realized he was treading dangerous waters. "You can't actually see it until you die. It's there, but at the same time it's not there. D'ya see what I'm saying?"
"I…think so," Vyktorea said uncertainly, a frown ruffling the fur on her pretty face.
Eliot quickly changed the subject, "Anyway, if you really want to go for a ride in the Phantom, I suppose I could take you and Plaetoh up sometime before we leave."
"Why would Plaetoh want to go?" Vyktorea asked suspiciously.
Eliot looked right into her eyes and said, "I think that Plaetoh would like to go anywhere that you go."
Vyktorea stared at him in surprise then looked away. They finished eating in silence.
When the caslikoh-song started, Bombalurina and Demeetar went to the center of the hall and began to dance and sing in Coricus. It sounded much like the sensual purr of an amorous female, and the dance that went with it was very sexy and provocative.
Some of the younger females joined them, including Vyktorea. The young males were practically salivating as they watched the females dance.
Then, as the dance seemed to be reaching its climax, Demeetar, who had turned to the sidelines to cast a fond glance in the direction of her mate, suddenly froze and pointed a trembling paw, screaming, "Macavity!"
©1999 Delilah