Tau Ceti (an Ell Donsaii story #6) by Laurence Dahners Page A

hunted it yourself. O r perhaps just because walking all day had left himr so hungry? Hie eyed Syrdian who looked back at himr and said, “This is really good Dex. You’re a great cook!”
    Deeply affected by the praise, Dex shrugged hies wings, “I think it’s just ‘cause we’re hungry, but thanks. The tubers are done just right too.” Hie cocked hies neck, “ I’m glad we didn’t have to eat dried talor.”
    Syrdian ducked hies head. “ D ried talor wouldn’t be that bad.”
    Dex snorted, “Yes it would! But we’ll eat it before we starve and be grateful of it.” Hie found himrself very pleased with Syrdian’s changed attitude. “We should collect some more firewood so we can keep our fire burning all night.”
    Syrdian said, “I already got some while you were cooking. Would you show me how your snares work? In case… in… if…”
    Dex rescued himr, “In case I need help later?”
    Syrdian shrugged hies wings in embarrassment, “ Sure .”
     
    During the night another twoosh sound signaled the triggering of hies second snare. Sure enough when hie looked that way Dex could see the infrared shadow of a burrower struggling in the air beneath the first sapling hie ’d attached a snare to. Dex started to get up but Syrdian said, “I’ll get it.”
    Dex settled back down by the fire, somewhat amazed at the turn around. Syrdian had really begun to contribute. “Bring back the fiberlin,” hie called out.
    “I will.”
     
    ***
     
    Deltain landed on the ledge back at the cave, hearts heavy. Hies wings sagged as hie walked back to hies leatherworking area. Someone was there and hies hearts lifted momentarily before hie recognized it wasn’t Dex. Still, it might be someone with news of Dex. Then hie saw it was Ercole, one of Syrdian’s parents. “Hello.”
    Ercole drew himrself up, “Your child Dex. The other youth tell me hie watches Syrdian … a lot. ”
    Del tain shrugged hies wings, “C ould be , Syrdian is very beautiful. I don’t know.”
    “Syrdian didn’t come back yesterday or today.”
    “I know.”
    “We think that Dex might have had something to do with it.”
    Deltain tilted hies head curiously, “How would hie have, ‘had something to do with it’?”
    Ercole’s eyes narrowed, “One of the children saw himr leave the cave just after Syrdian did yesterday.”
    “So?”
    “So, where did they go?”
    “I don’t know! I just spent the day searching for Dex. Hie hasn’t returned either!”   Deltain tilted hies head questioningly, “You think they’re together just because they left at about the same time? Why aren’t you asking Qes? Qes and Syrdian have been spending a lot of time together.”
    “Qes never saw Syrdian yesterday.”
    Deltain’s head lifted and went back signaling some disbelief, “You got that from himr? ”
    “Qes wouldn’t lie.”
    “ I hope you’re right.”
     
    ***
     
    Ell took over watching events on TC3 from Emma at 10PM. Once night had fallen and the Teecees had settled down to sleep by the fire she just kept an occasional eye on the screen with Allan monitoring to tell her if anything happened. Meanwhile , she opened Emma’s files of the breaking of the burrower’s carcass, trying to understand what each of the structures Goldy exposed might be. The preparation of the burrower had some elements in common with a dissection , though the handling of the internal organs left a lot to be desired. Still, Ell had only a modicum of familiarity with the anatomy of Earth’s animals from her biology class. They’d dissected a frog and studied a little comparative anatomy but she felt lost trying to compare what little she knew to what she saw on the video. Still she felt like what she was seeing seemed surprisingly like what she knew of Earth’s animals. She wondered if it could be because, like Norris had mentioned, these animals might spring from DNA? That reminded her that they hadn’t yet taken their biologic sample for DNA