CANAISIS ∞ Chronicle One: The Last Living Ship ∞ 1: A New Mission

18 ∞ Diamonds and Sharp Skills

Day 00004 Mission Nilex

Both airlock doors of the Fishery stood open, so Gareth stepped inside and looked around. Four members of Ahmid's crew kneeled on the floor facing him, heads bowed. This was starting to bother him, but he ignored it. Facing one them, he asked, "Where may I find Ahmid or Ayla?"

The man on the floor raised his head. He was young by the looks of him, his beard just coming in, with short dark hair and grey eyes. His black turban glimmered with a pattern of silver fractals. The man addressed him quietly, "Ayla is several rows down, harvesting eggs—last I saw her, Citizen." He bowed his head again.

Gareth sighed quietly to himself. "What is your name?"

"Fahid, Citizen. I am called Fahid Nilex." He kept his head bowed.

"Fahid, please look at me."

Fahid raised his head and made eye contact.

"I am Captain Gareth Levant of the Canaisis. I am not a Citizen. You may call me Captain if you wish, but please do not call me Citizen. Would you please tell Ayla I'm here?"

"There is no need, Citi— er... Captain. Ayla will have already been informed of your presence. But I will go, if you wish."

Just as he said this, Ayla came into view. She slowed her brisk pace as she approached them, then stopped. She stood tall and bowed her head slightly to Gareth.

"It's good to see you this morning, Captain. Is all well?"

Gareth noted that Fahid had bowed his head again, as other Nilex members approached in the background. Each one lowered themselves to their knees.

Ayla watched him as he watched the others behind her. Turning his attention to Ayla, he said, "I came to see if there's anything you need that We may assist with."

She smiled, but kept her eyes low. "No, Captain. The lower temperature has helped greatly. Will the generator be operating today? The battery bank is beginning to drain."

"It should be, if all goes well. But don't worry—Canaisis has energy to spare if it comes to that. I'm heading to the generator now. Is Ahmid there already?"

"Yes, Captain, he is." Ayla met his gaze. "Will you join us for Last Meal? I had Katya unpack some spices to make our meal more pleasant." She gestured at a woman who was kneeling behind her.

Not wanting to be too committed, Gareth replied, "I will, if it is possible. But my ship duties must come first."

She bowed her head in acknowledgment. "Of that, I understand, Captain. All of us understand that the ship comes first—we've been mining asteroids for generations. I hope you'll have the opportunity, Captain."

Smiling politely, he nodded. "I'll take my leave then."

He turned to leave as Ayla bowed low. When he reached the doorway, he looked back. Ayla was still standing there, her eyes locking with his as the woman she'd called Katya got up and started talking rapidly at her. The rest of the group were still on their knees.

He continued around the facility to the back of it. When he rounded the last corner, he came upon Ahmid and his two techs working on the control systems. Ahmid immediately turned to him and bowed. Gareth watched the other two as they stopped working, bending their knees. This was obviously a social custom, but the significance of it was unclear to him.

«Canaisis,» he thought, «anything in the records we picked up about their kneeling?»

«Yes, Captain, there is Law in the library referencing kneeling before a Citizen. The punishment for failure to do so is up to the discretion of the Citizen, including death.»