Once things settled down and the ship got underway for Osmus, the nearest of the Quiet Worlds, Malcolm called several key people to the mess hall for a private chat. It was time to hash some things out.

Pampaa sat down at one of the long cafeteria tables. Benja sat with him.

Seeing the two of them together, chatting idly, Etzli recalled simpler times in a stream of vivid images and smells. Wet grass after a spring rain storm. Sunlight glittering through gently ...