Part 26 (1/2)

Rorqual Station Towne, the last attacked, was the nearest to Mou'anui. Its proximity was both conven- ient and ominous, for that hinted to Mataroreva, Hwos.h.i.+en, and the others responsible for keeping Cachalot's citizens quiet and secure a growing bold- ness on the part of whatever was behind the a.s.sault.

As the town most recently destroyed, it was also the most likely to yield any clues to research. And if any trouble arose, skimmers from Mou'anui could reach the Caribe more rapidly than if it were to anchor at the town site of, say, Te iti Turtle, which lay a thou- sand kilometers farther out in the ocean.

Thinking of destruction as she slipped into her bunk made Cora think of Silvio. And of her breakdown.

Rachael had been five at the time of her father's death and her mother's collapse. She knew of both only

112 CACHALOT.

vaguely. Someday Cora would have to explain both, explain what had truly happened.

Mataroreva was at work on the bridge.

”What are you doing?” Cora asked as she ap- proached him.

”Oh, good morning. Beautiful.” He glanced up momentarily from the console and smiled hugely.

”Just plain Cora will do.”

”Okay. Good morning, just plain Cora.” He touched a contact switch. ”I'm setting the stabilizers. Wouldn't be much fun if we spent a few hours diving and sur- faced to find that the s.h.i.+p had drifted out of sight.”

”Stabil-we're here, then?” She looked around in surprise. The ocean looked no different from what they had crossed in days of traveling out from Mou'anui.

”More or less. I'm picking a spot. Have a look over the side.”

She did so, moving to the upper railing to peer at the water. She almost blinded herself in the process.

Several hexalate formations grew almost to the sur- face, and their reflected glare made her blink. The in- tensity was not as bad as that from the sands of a motu, however. By not looking directly at the upper- most growths and by squinting hard, she could gaze into the water without protective goggles. She could not see any end to the reef. The Caribe hovered above it, adrift in a sea of emerald and yellow. ”This is where the town was located?”

He nodded. ”The position was fixed by the first ves- sels that returned here after the destruction-the sur- vivors of the town, those who'd been out working.” He pointed, and she noticed several widely s.p.a.ced, floating blobs of red: polymer marked buoys, each containing its own directional transmitter.

”What was the town doing here?”

”This is a fairly good-sized, well-known fis.h.i.+ng reef.

113.

The Rorqualians had it staked out for organic mining purposes. The survivors indicated that the town had taken its limit and was preparing to depart only a cou- ple of days after it was. .h.i.t. But they were primarily the fishermen. They weren't sure precisely what was being stocked in the town's holds.”

”And, just like the others, they didn't find any bod- ies?”

He shook his head. ”Not so much as a finger. You would think at least one or two would sink, or be trapped under falling debris and pinned to the bottom.

But nothing.”

She stared at the water. ”It's hard to believe anyone ever lived around here.”

”Oh, the town was here.” He started for the ladder.

”Get into your suit. I haven't explored the area myself, but records say there's still plenty of evidence around.”

He finished setting the stabilizers and the automatic warning network. The latter was engaged as a matter of procedure more than anything else, since the two patrolling orcas provided a far more efficient advance detection system than anything composed of circuitry and transceivers.

Cora was first in, followed closely by Rachael, Mataroreva, and Merced. Pristine beauty she had an- tic.i.p.ated. The reef did not disappoint her. Great hex- alate heads like crystal trees rose from the sandy bottom, while diamond tunnels pierced labyrinths of frozen cloud.