Alcantaran 1: Alien Abduction (40 page)

Ron came up from the lower level as the cloth arrived.
 
He took three of the robots that Tik had already programmed and started unloading the cloth and other material.
 
As soon as the delivery truck left, Ron set the robots to hauling goods inside.
 
He showed them the room to store it in.
 
By the time the robots were through, the room was almost full.
 
Ron was excited and ready to get some new clothes made.
 
He already had some patterns picked out, so he took some of the cloth and other items that would be needed into the sewing room.
 
He loaded the cloth into the slot that Auntie directed and then turned and moved in front of the scanner as she measured him.
 
Ron then loaded the thread, buttons and velcro material into the other slots and left the rest to Auntie.
 
He returned to the upper cargo bay to tell the others to go pick material and to get measured but they were both busy.
 
The robot dealer had just pulled up with a load of parts, so Ron helped find places to store everything.
 
He had the robots run each item in front of a camera so Auntie could add it into their inventory.
 
She tracked where everything was stored, so later, they could go right to the spot for that particular part.

It was lunch time before they knew it, so the trio stopped for a bite to eat.
 
Dolores brought sandwiches and drinks to them where they were working.
 
They ate and then waited for the Fu family to arrive.
 
Gus kept supervising the last of the robot arrivals but Tamu was doing most of the actual work.
 
Tik had Auntie make note of the robots that needed programming and she would do it later.
 
Tamu found the robot that was to be his assistant, refueled it and programmed it to help securely stow all of the other robots that had been delivered.

The Fu family arrived and the trio took them on the grand tour of the upper level.
 
They were still very cautious about letting anyone know that they had opened all of the levels of Auntie.
 
The entire Fu family was happy just to see the upper level and didn't even ask questions about any of the rest of the ship.
 
Mrs. Fu and the boys were excited and impressed with the rows of robots sitting in the cargo bay.
 
The boys had to sit in the fliter and hear tales of using it to move cargo from space ship to space ship.
 
The trio took the family to the cockpit and had Auntie bring up the flight simulator.
 
The entire family jumped at the chance to fly Auntie.
 
The boys were better at it than their parents.
 
Tik had Auntie show some pictures of galaxies that she had visited.
 
The Fu's were awed and couldn't get over how clear and life-like the images were.
 
Finally, Fu declared it was time to head for home.
 
They boys weren't ready but they obeyed their father.
 
As they got ready to leave, Ron paid Fu his consulting fee.
 
He told him they wouldn't need him for the next two days because they were going to be very busy stowing the food supplies they had bought.

Ron gave Fu a list of material for the catwalk and asked him, "Could you find this material and a price?
 
Also, could you find someone who could make different sizes of wooden bases?
 
I would prefer someone who had access to different types of wood and could complete a project in a short time."

Fu asked, "Will you be leaving soon?"

Ron replied with a chuckle, "Everyday we sit in the space port costs us money.
 
Not only what we are spending but in lost revenue from trading.
 
We have really enjoyed our time here and I'm sure we'll be back but for now we need to concentrate on getting loaded and finish shopping for trade items."

Fu quietly looked at him as he asked, "Does the space ship coming to our planet have anything to do with your rapid departure?"

Ron was surprised and almost caught off guard.
 
He replied, "Not unless they are our competitors.
 
Then we definitely want to beat them to the next planet.
 
If they have a lot of silver to trade here, they may drop the price but we already have bought most of what we need.
 
By the way, do you know who the incoming ship is or where they are from?"

"I don't know but I'll find out and let you know.
 
My staff just let me know as I came through the terminal that another ship was on the way in.
 
It has been good working with you and I thank you for the consulting fee.
 
I especially thank you for being so gracious to my family."

Intuition prompted Ron to say, "We were glad to have your family come for the tour and we really appreciate your help.
 
I just wanted to let you know that we actually did mine that silver off an asteroid.
 
We have done nothing illegal or immoral but we do have some people we would just as soon not meet right now.
 
We have a feud with them and we don't want to involve your planet.
 
We are not firing you right now and we may need your help again but we
do not
want to put you or your family in danger because of our feud.
 
We would like nothing better than to bring our families here to meet you once we have settled this.
 
We value the driver's and your friendship and hope we can leave you feeling the same way."

"Thank you for being honest.
 
I can understand a feud, because that is what this war is all about.
 
The Bugs just agitated and stirred up what had been simmering for quite a few years.
 
We might have avoided the war if they had stayed out of it.
 
My family and I consider you to be valuable friends and we will be praying for you to find a way to end this feud.
 
We would be delighted to meet your families.
 
Tomorrow, I will find these things that you need and let you know."

"Thank you, friend," Ron said as he escorted Fu to the door to catch up to his family.
 
They waved as they left and Ron went to help Gus finish loading the accessories and parts for the robots.
 
Tik had returned to her task of programming the rest of the robots.
 
Ron broadcast his conversation that he had with Fu and they discussed the implications.

A short while later, Fu called Auntie on the radio and asked for Ron.
 
Auntie relayed it to Ron.
 
"Ron, the incoming ship is from Nodac-Liujia and they are known to be allies with the Bugs.
 
Their stated intentions are to trade."

Ron asked, "Have they ever traded here before?"

Fu said, "Yes.
 
They didn’t stop very often but did come for trade occasionally.
 
It has been over a year since they had been here last."

Ron gathered that Fu didn't care much for the incoming visitors.
 
He thanked Fu for the information and told him to have a good evening with his family.

Ron asked if Gus and Tik had heard and they replied that Auntie had included them.
 
He and Gus were through with loading, so they decided to go see what the Ag workers had done in the conservatory.
 
Tik couldn't take the pressure so she joined them.
 
The workers had finished with the samples going into the sealed storage and were starting on the rest of the dead material.
 
They were running it through the chipper and then spreading it on top of the soil.
 
The trio noticed that there was a lot more water running through the stream and that it was still muddy from the increased flow.

They were happy with the progress in the conservatory, so they decided to practice with the edged weapons.
 
They needed to pick up the pace on their training with them.
 
There were times when a gun was not the weapon to use.
 
Gus knew how to use the hammer/ax he carried but even he needed to know how to defend himself.
 
They still felt that the Bugs would be chasing them as soon as they had a lead and this incoming space ship held Bug allies.

As they ate that evening, they talked of what it would take to be ready for a quick take off.
 
Ron checked with Auntie and found out that the ship was still four days out.
 
He asked her to pull up any information about Nodac-Liujia.
 
He told her to set it up on a 3-D viewer for them there in the dining hall.
 
The information had come from the Bug's database and didn't cover a lot of things that the trio would like to see.
 
They saw some video of the inhabitants and the planet itself.
 
The planet was dark and dreary with garbage scattered everywhere.
 
When the wind would blow in the video, garbage could be seen racing before the wind.
 
None of the inhabitants inspired confidence or made the trio want to try to develop a friendship with them.
 
What facts they had found, made them think that their driver had given good advice to put up a shield if they parked anywhere near.

Tik said, "Auntie, please put up the shield when the incoming space ship is a day away.
 
Use the shield to block any probes trying to see how many people are on board or any other useful information.
 
And keep the doors locked."

Auntie reassured her, "I always do when you're away."

That night when he was getting ready for bed, Ron looked in the mirror and noticed that he didn't seem to have as much gray in his beard.
 
He knew that he felt better than he had in several years and he actually felt younger.
 
He wondered if the bracelet was doing all this.
 
He asked Auntie if there were other bracelets for Tik and Gus.
 
She answered that there were six more of the bracelets and; with a little modification, they would fit both of them.
 
Ron made a note to get the bracelets in the morning for them to start wearing.

The next morning the rain was still coming down but it was lighter.
 
The trio decided to leave the shield up just like before.
 
The space port ramp where they were parked was now dry so they could set supplies on the concrete without any fear of them getting wet.
 
The delivery trucks from the grocery wholesaler and the nursery soon started to arrive and the process of loading supplies into Auntie began.
 
Gus activated 10 of the new robots including Tamu, the two Ag workers and the two robots from the mother ship.
 
Tamu directed the 10 and they started carrying food supplies into the lower cargo bay and onto the lower kitchen storage area.
 
Gus used the other four robots to start moving the plants and seeds into the conservatory.
 
With both the middle and lower doors open, the process went much faster.
 
Some of the food supplies were very heavy.
 
Dolores had ordered barrels of different grain flour, so the robots started a circle around the inside rooms to keep the traffic flowing.
 
Ron and Gus knew they would have a lot of food for three people for a year but they had no idea it would be this much.
 
Dolores directed the robots exactly where to put the food in the pantry.

Gus got the plants and seeds in the conservatory and Tik came in to get the Ag workers started planting.
 
She activated two more of the new Ag workers and had Auntie help her lay out work for all four.
 
They wanted to get as many of the plants in the ground as they could before they had to take off into space.
 
Wherever the catwalk was still in good enough shape to hold the hydroponic tanks, they set things up to start the plants growing in there.
 
There were not enough plants to fill the conservatory but at least they were starting.

The next morning the trio sat at breakfast and talked over their plans for the day.
 
Things were really shaping up and the last of the things they had ordered should be delivered before noon.
 
Ron said that he wanted to go get the steel for the catwalks and check on the woodworker that Fu had found.
 
Tik didn't want to leave the work going on in the conservatory and Gus felt he should stay to supervise getting the rest of the supplies loaded.
 
After their morning workout with the edged weapons, Ron headed for the terminal building.
 
He chatted with Fu for a few minutes as he waited for the driver and his vehicle.
 
When the driver arrived, he headed to the steel place first.
 
He ordered the steel he needed and set it up for them to deliver that afternoon.
 
Next he headed to the woodworker and checked out the different wood samples.
 
He ordered 100 bases which came in different sizes and shapes to mount the silver figures on.
 
He also ordered two units of wood to be delivered in two days.

As he was getting ready to leave, he saw a flyer for a big sale at a machinery manufacturer.
 
The manufacturer was just down the road, so Ron headed there.
 
The manufacturer had a large inventory that hadn't sold because of the war.
 
They needed to move it and Ron saw an opportunity for a planet that he remembered studying about on Auntie.
 
He checked out the machinery and bought six of the units to be delivered the next day.
 
Ron figured they had enough things to trade now.
 
Unless they came across some other really good bargain, they were set.
 
He broadcast to let Gus and Tik know what he had done.
 
Gus broadcast back that with all the trade items they had been buying, they needed some more tie down netting and something they could use to anchor them.