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- Author: Susan English
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“Hi, Calli.” She sat down next to me.
“Hi, Berit, what’s up?”
“The prospective new biologist for Shambhala is coming today.”
My stomach contracted. “You mean Pavani?”
“Yeah. She’ll stay the night here, then go to the station tomorrow, like you did when you first arrived, remember?”
“Uh-huh.” I felt weak, thinking about her image.
“Would you mind meeting her at the terminal? Yasmin is supposed to go, but she told me earlier this morning she has the feeling another hive is on the verge of swarming, and she doesn’t want to miss it. I said I would be happy to go in her place, but since you aren’t working—”
“Sure,” I said. “It would be my pleasure.”
◆◆◆
When I spotted Pavani in the rendezvous area of the Central Lunar Terminal, my heart skipped a beat. What was it with my visceral reaction to this woman? I didn’t even know her. She stood, scanning the crowd, a solitary island in the crush of people. As I approached, she looked directly at me, a flicker of recognition in her eyes, then it was gone.
“You must be Pavani.” I held out my hand. “I’m Calli.”
She took my hand in hers, her grip firm and sure. “A pleasure to meet you, Calli.”
“Let me help you with your bag.” I bent down to pick up her backpack off the floor.
“Thanks. I don’t know what I packed in there, but it feels like it’s full of lead.”
I laughed. “It’s a consequence of the Moon’s gravitational field, even one-sixth G
takes getting used to after three days on the Terra-Luna Express.”
“I think you’re right. I barely remember how to walk.”
Shouldering her backpack, I smiled at her. “Here,” I said, offering her my arm, “lean on me if you need to.”
She took my arm, and my bare skin tingled with her touch. “Thanks.”
207
I felt inexplicably happy. “Is this your first time on the Moon?”
“Yes, my first time in space.”
As we walked to the metro station, I studied her profile—her expression was impassive, unreadable.
When we boarded the train, Pavani released my arm, and the absence of her hand on my skin was like the loss of a limb. I shrugged off her pack, setting it on the floor. The metro doors whooshed closed and we both reached for the vertical bar next to the door at the same time. Our fingers touched, and I felt a jolt. I moved my hand down.
“So, Calli,” Pavani began, her voice surprisingly melodious, her accent intriguing,
“how long have you been working for the Foundation?”
“I guess it’s been about nine months now.”
“How do you like it?”
“I love it.”
“Why?” Pavani asked.
I looked into her eyes, deep pools of tranquility. Why what? I had completely lost the thread of the conversation.
“Why do you love it?” she repeated.
“Oh, yeah. Where to start? I never imagined an organization like this one existed.
The premise of the Foundation is, how do I describe it?” I looked at the door, at our reflections in the dark glass. Our eyes met, and I averted my gaze, feeling her eyes on my reflection like a physical touch. I peeked again at her profile. “It’s love.” I shrugged.
“We don’t just work for the Foundation, it’s way deeper than that. We are a part of the Foundation, like a collective hive, but not in a simplistic sense, we aren’t drones. We all have the opportunity to be the best we can be, and the culture is one of unconditional support and compassion. We’re all individuals, and we’re pursuing very different fields, but we are bound together, there’s a common thread of community and connection. I don’t know how better to describe it.”
“I understand what you mean.”
I looked in her eyes, those serene, bewitching eyes. Yes, I could see it. She understood.
When we arrived at the Arcadia metro stop, I carried Pavani’s bag as we walked through the airlock and into Delphi Park, where Yasmin was waiting for us.
“You made it!” she said and gave me a quick hug. “Thanks, Calli.”
“Happy to help. And the bees?”
“Safe and sound in their new hive,” she said, smiling, then turned to Pavani. “Hi, Pavani, I’m Yasmin.” She reached out to take Pavani’s hand. “Welcome.”
“Thank you,” said Pavani.
“Let me show you around.” She took Pavani’s arm in hers.
I looked down at the backpack in my hand.
“Oh, Calli,” she turned to me. “Berit is waiting for you in the chicken coop. She didn’t want to start the stockyard feeding without you.”
208
Feeling a twinge of disappointment in my gut, I realized I had been looking forward to seeing Pavani’s first reactions to the lunar facility.
“And do you mind putting Pavani’s bag in her room? It’s right next to yours.”
“Oh, okay,” I said, trying to mask my now full-blown disappointment.
“See you at dinner, then?” asked Yasmin.
“Okay.” I looked at Pavani. “It was nice to meet you, Pavani.”
“Same here,” said Pavani, fixing her eyes on mine.
I smiled, my momentary disappointment forgotten. As I walked toward the door to the corridor, I heard Yasmin talking about the fountain and the wall of foliage. I would see Pavani later. But that night, she didn’t join us for dinner. When I asked Yasmin, she told me Pavani had felt tired after the three-day journey from the Earth, and a little overwhelmed at being back in a gravitational field. “It’s her first time in space,” Yasmin said.
“Yeah, I know.”
209
I didn’t see Pavani the next morning, not in the gym where I did my regular Moon workout, and not at lunch, either. I made my rounds, saying goodbye to my friends, and giving each of the chickens a cuddle, a time-consuming process since there were thirty of them!
At two-fifteen I was sitting in the park on one of the benches, waiting for the metro train. A few minutes later Pavani arrived, carrying her backpack. When I saw her, my face broke into a huge grin, I couldn’t help myself. I jumped up and hurried over to her, reaching for her bag. “Let me help with that,” I said.
“Thanks.” She handed it to me.
“Still full of lead?”
Her lips twitched almost imperceptibly. “No, today it’s full of titanium.”
“Ah, that’s an improvement. But soon you’ll be back in micro-g, where you’ll only have to deal with the mass, not the weight.”
“Yeah, that was rather unexpected,” Pavani said as she followed me into the airlock, the door shutting behind us. I palmed the security pad to the outer door, and when it opened, we stepped onto the metro platform. “I had the naive notion that in zero-G, everything, my body included, would be light as a feather and easy to manipulate.”
The metro train arrived, and we got on. Pavani took hold of the vertical bar next to the door, and I put my hand on the bar well below hers. “Momentum and weight are different beasts,” I said.
“I know, I know. I took physics at university, but I suppose I never thought about it before my trip to the Moon.”
“Just as difficult to stop a massive object in motion in micro-g as it is on the Earth.”
“Yeah.” Pavani rubbed the top of her head lightly with her free hand. “I had a few mishaps on the Terra-Luna Express, but luckily I learned fast.”
We arrived at the Sector One station and made our way to the shuttle transport platform where we donned our spacesuits.
“No need to put on your helmet until we’re strapped into our seats,” I told Pavani as we boarded the shuttle. I poked my head in the cockpit to say hi to Sook and introduced her to Pavani. Then I offered Pavani the window seat, remembering when Diana had done the same for me. Pavani tried to put on her helmet, but she fumbled with the latch, her hands clumsy in her gloves.
“Let me help.” I fastened the clasps, then put on my own helmet. “Can you hear me?” I asked once my helmet was in place.
“Yes.”
She was looking out the window, gripping her armrests tightly. I wanted to say something, to reassure her, but my mind was a blank. The engines roared to life and we took off. I was clenching my armrests, too, jaw clamped tightly. Then we were in space, 210
and I relaxed. I stole a glance at Pavani—her body seemed less tense. She was staring out the window. I could hear her breathing through my headset, slow and steady. I sat quietly, my mind turning to thoughts of the station. I was on my way home.
In the doc module airlock I helped Pavani remove her spacesuit. I had gotten better with practice, still not as adept as Diana, but I easily negotiated the closures on Pavani’s suit, despite my gloves. Then Pavani helped me with mine, and we entered the station, where Raven and Naomi were waiting to greet us.
“You’re back!” cried Naomi, her usual, exuberant self. She gave me a quick hug, then turned her attention to Pavani. “Pavani, so glad you’re here.” She reached out and gave Pavani a hug, too. Pavani looked surprised, but she hugged Naomi back. Or maybe she was simply trying to keep herself stabilized in micro-g.
When Naomi released her, Raven offered Pavani her hand. “I’m Raven.”
“We’ll let you get settled, then you’ll join us for the staff meeting,” said Naomi. “We’ll give you the grand tour tomorrow.”
Pavani reached for her pack, which was floating next to us.
“Allow me,” I said, grabbing the bag with one hand.
“Okay, thanks,” said Pavani, her expression tantalizingly close to a smile.
I led the way, and Raven and Naomi talked excitedly about the station, pointing out the padded corridors (“color-coded,” explained Naomi), the astonishing mosaic in the hub (“thanks to our astronomer, Elena,” said Raven), and how thrilled they both were to have another biologist visiting Shambhala. Listening to their chatter, I felt the love flowing through my veins, love for Naomi and Raven, and love for Shambhala, my home. Pavani was mostly silent, listening, and—I imagined, though I didn’t look—
focusing on keeping her body oriented as we propelled ourselves through the corridors.
We arrived at the dorm module, and I glanced back, meeting Naomi’s eyes. I raised an eyebrow. “Which cabin?”
“Sixteen-alpha,” said
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