“Got no bag, don’t need one. Suit keeps me warm.” Toby had on his full running gear—aluminum pelvic cradle and shin servos and heavy carbosteel shank shocks.
“Must get tired, haulin’ all that around,” Killeen said.
“I like ’em,” Toby said, sitting down and adjusting a compressor lock. “Traded some my ’quipment for ’em.”
“What’d you give?”
“Some backup chips I had in my shoulder.”
“Those’re Family chips.”
Toby looked edgy. “Well…”
“They ask for any old religious Aspects?”
“Huh? No, no, nothin’ like that.”
Killeen felt relieved. He was sure His Supremacy would eventually try to get chips away from the Bishops simply because knowledge was power. On the other hand, he shouldn’t mistake every minor incident as a vast portent.
“What’d you give?” he repeated.
“C’mon, Dad, I’m carryin’ tech chips nobody’ll ever use again.”
Killeen kept his voice flat. “Like what?”
“Buildin’ stuff. Puttin’ up walls usin’ mech parts, like that.”
“We might need that.”
“When? Can’t build anything here.”
His voice finally got away from him, turning sharp. “We’ll find someplace. Build a Citadel, one bigger’n the last. Better, too—only we won’t know how, ’cause you gave away the knowhow.”
Toby said sarcastically, “That time comes, I’ll just trade ’em back. If I’m gonna settle down, won’t need trekkin’ gear.”
“You’ll find whoever you gave the chips—”
“Two Niner guys, it was. And I traded ’em square, didn’t give ’em—”
“—and trade whatever you must. Just get those chips back.”
“Dad!” Toby sprang slightly into the air, driven by his compressors. “I can’t just go—”
“You will. Family property stays in the Family.”
“Look, other people’re tradin’. It’s natural.”
“Who?”
“How you expect we got runnin’ gear, tents, cookin’—”
“Make it, same’s on Snowglade. Who?”
“There’s not enough mechwreck around. And shapin’ it would take—”
“I saw parts over at the Niner camp. Scrounge some, set down, ’n’ start usin’ the craft you got stored in you. Now who else?”
When Toby had told him the names of four others, he called Jocelyn and gave her the job of finding them and getting back the gear they’d bartered. He could see from the stiff set of Jocelyn’s mouth that she didn’t like the job but she went off to do it without a word.
Killeen stood watching Toby making toward the Niner camp. He was vaguely aware that he could have handled matters better. Shibo came over and slipped an arm around him, nuzzling his cheek wordlessly.
He grunted with frustration. “Hard to switch back to father after bein’ Cap’n.”
She nodded. “Toby’s scared, like us all. Needs something that gives him a lift.”
“I can see that. But…”
“We’re all recovering. Lost Argo, need some direction.”
“Toby seems pretty steady.”
“He and Besen have helped each other.”
“You mean…?”
She nodded, making a sign that meant love, romance, courting.
“Oh.” Killeen blinked. “I hadn’t noticed.”
