Chapter 43

Stay or go home?

“Mandy,” Blackie asked, “are you going to sail back with us, or stay here?” He was not sure they needed a full-time representative, but Tony had suggested it. Mandy was hesitant, mainly because of the sea voyage and her physical reaction to it.

Mandy was not really looking forward to any more trips on boats. “Ser Tony said I need to meet with other vendors and let the men of Refugio get used to having to deal with a woman. He was also talking about taking a trip to Utopia because of our need for food. A lot of what we need comes from there.”

“Well, Spacer didn’t get permission from the people to do Utopia, just here. We need to approach them too, but our reputation with them is worse than here. You need to decide. We are getting loaded, and I know Jill will want that potted meat we are getting. The filter material is going to be a bonus.”

“Filter material? What is that?”

“They have water filters made of some fiber they have here that will work in the water system. We were out of ours and the ones from the nut husks were not working very well. They are going to need that since the water system was damaged in that last storm.

“Decide pretty soon, I want to get back with the wind this time.” Blackie left the meeting room at the hostel. Mandy decided she needed to talk to Sarita and Rita. They were not forbidden to leave the building, so she walked up the hill to the Residence.

The guards at the door recognized her from the earlier meeting and opened the door but were still uneasy. Women just did not walk around alone like this. She did not hesitate when they opened the door but entered and wandered up the stairs. Serept saw her pass his office and hurried to help her.

“Sera Mandy, can I be of help? We were not expecting you.” Serept was becoming accustomed to the freedom the people of Port expected.

“Yes, you are Serept, correct?”

“That is my name, yes, I am the Overlord’s assistant. What do you seek?”

“I need to talk to Sera Rita or Sera Sarita. Where do I find them?” Serept led her down the hall to the family area of the Residence. “Thank you, Serept, I am not used to these big buildings. We only have a few buildings in Port. This is really different from home.”

“Please let me know when you wish to visit, Sera Mandy, and I will be sure someone meets you and brings you to the harem.” Serept opened the door to the family area and showed her in. He then lectured the staff that was observing Mandy’s entrance about how different life in Port was and how this guest was to be treated. He wondered how these changes were going to affect the men of the city. Women just did not wander around. Even the Unspoken and servants who had no psy powers walked in groups. The Overlord was allowing change, but Serept was not sure his leader realized how disruptive it might be.

***

“Mandy, please come join me here in the shade,” Rita called to her as she entered the open patio area. “The spring sunshine is hot today. The women here say that usually means there will be a storm.” Rita introduced Mandy to the other women.

“I hope not,” Mandy said, “because Blackie wants to sail on the night wind.” She settled down on one of the large cushions they used for chairs. She reached for a basket of fiber and a spindle out of habit.

“Oh, I did not expect you to know how to do this,” Bella said, then realized how rude she had been and blushed.

“I think this is something everyone on our world know. We all need cloth, and this is one of the things that gets it done.” Mandy fingered the fine but short fibers. “I don’t know if I can handle this short fiber. What is it from?”

“This is off the seeds of a native plant,” Marta explained. “We call it pod silk. The fabric is very soft and shiny but not too strong. I have heard you have something from Port that is soft but a bit stronger than this.”

“We get several kinds of fiber out of the seaweeds. One is soft and much longer than this, but strong. We made some wraps and scarves out of it to use in trade. The fibers are really long.” She leaned over and watched how Bella gathered the short fibers and over laid the ends as she twisted them. “I see. It is like when we add new fibers, only you have to do it more often.”

Marta had wanted to meet this young woman, but this was unexpected. “What brings you to the Residence, Sera Doe?”

“I need to talk with Sarita and Rita. We have finished our bartering, and they are loading the ship.” Sarita walked out from the sleeping room for unmarried girls and rushed to greet her friend.

“Sarita, I need help.”

Rita looked to Marta. “Sera Marta, may we use your office?” Rita decided it would be the most private place in the harem.

“Of course. It is obvious I am not going to get much done today. Bookkeeping will have to wait.” The women rose, walked to the small office across the patio, and settled into the cushions on the floor.

“I need to decide. Am I staying here or going home? Blackie sails this evening and I need to have my gear ready.”

“Why would you stay?” Rita was puzzled.

“Tony says I need to get to know more about what is needed here. He wants to take me to ‘Topia to get a treaty started there.”

“Mandy, those are good reasons to stay,” Sarita said softly. “They don’t need you to sort people like before and you can really do some good here. Besides, the trip down is going to be rougher. There is a storm Blackie will have to avoid, but the sea will be rough. He had the meat pots packed in straw so they will get to Port unbroken.”

“There is much you can do,” Rita said, “by just showing that your people are not all like Gunson, killing people and burning settlements. There are things the women need that you are the only one who can find out about.” Many things that could come from the islands, but the men would not know that the women wanted them.

“I would like you to stay.” Sarita said. “I have decided that accepting the marriage offer is going to be hard. But if I want to make a difference here in Refugio, it will be the best way. It is already making changes in Port. Maybe we can make changes in Utopia too.”

Mandy was startled. “You think you can make that much of a difference?”

“Megal will be the leader of the settlement someday, and in Refugio, his word is final. Even the church cannot overrule him.” Rita was pleased. Sarita realized the burden she and Megal would bear.

Mandy looked at her friend in a new light. “Well, there will be other ships going to Port. I will stay.” This woman would have influence and power. She would be someone who could help. “I had better get back and collect my things.”

“Join us here. There is room, and it will be easier since Tony is also here.” Rita rose and went to let Marta know that Mandy would be moving to the Residence now that the rest of the party was leaving.

***

Marta decided to have the evening meal as a family meal with the men of each family included. The steward had the main dining room for six but cleared the arrangement with Francos, much to his amusement.

“Marta, making these changes in our family has given me an idea of how it will go in other homes. It is not going to be easy!” The servants bringing the food to the room were both those who delivered to the harem and to the common dining room of the Residence. There were frequent bumps, and stern looks as practices clashed.

“It must be done, Ser Francos,” Rita said. “I understand now how much it damages Refugio’s economy that over half of work force is sequestered.”

Megal was a bit tentative in his conversation. “Sera Sarita, I have read an article I believe you wrote. It was in the publication of the university in Utopia. It gave only a first name initial, but no degree awards as was done with your stepfather. It was on comparing population levels in Refugio and Utopia. Was that yours?”

“Yes, my stepfather encouraged me to write it. We are not allowed to begin studying at the university until we have manifested. He wanted me placed in a higher class than the first year.”

“It was well done, but I do not agree with you on the conclusion.”

“Really. What do you not agree with?”

“Well, the number of births in Refugio are much lower than what you report. Where did you get that data?”

“Do you know of one Ser Jacobic Roblies? I corresponded with him for this data.”

“Really. Ser Roblies was my history teacher at the gymnasium. He is a respected scholar here. Was he aware you are female?”

“What difference would that have made?” Sarita’s words were snapped out so that even Megal recognized it was said in anger.

Tony spoke up quickly. He knew Sarita well enough to know an explosion was building. “Perhaps you should approach Ser Roblies himself, Ser Megal.”

Rita watched her daughter’s face. “I believe that is an excellent suggestion, Tony,” He was helping head off a dangerous scene.

Megal sensed it too. “I will speak with him about it. Perhaps someone in his office provided the wrong numbers,” Megal watched with apprehension as Sarita’s expression became even more serious.

Francos remembered reading the article “Sera Sarita, I too have read the article and find it very worrisome. It was provided to me by Ser Roblies. I would appreciate your recommendations as to how we can understand why our numbers are unbalanced.” He was alarmed at the predictions about gender balance. Another thing to worry about, as if he didn’t have enough.

“I welcome that, Ser Francos,” Sarita said. She was beginning to question her future if she bonded with this young man. His father seemed more sensible.

“Enough serious talk,” Marta said. “We have fresh greens to finish our meal. Please everyone, enjoy.”

***

Later that evening, Megal opened his messaging device and carefully composed a question to Ser Roblies. He did not want to expose Sarita’s presence at the Residence, but he was certain that her data had been flawed. The balance of male and female infants was due to natural birth rates. The work of the House of the Pure did not have that great an influence. He trusted the word of the Keepers of the Blood that only the most seriously mutated were destroyed. That was what they were taught in school. It had to be true.

Ser Roblies must have been using his device because his reply was almost immediate. No, he had corresponded with S. Kearney in Utopia. The article that was published was quite factual, and he hoped that the Overlord had also read it. The implications were serious. He had references to historical instances on Terra of such policies and the imbalances they caused there. He could provide those to Megal if he or his father wanted to explore it further.

Megal suddenly understood Sarita’s reaction. She had been questioned about her knowledge, become justifiably angry, and the members of her family had intervened. The very idea that this woman had emotions and pride in her scholarship was so foreign to him. Yet, he remembered his cousins at his grandfather’s great house. The girls had more freedom than here in the city. He had frequently played board games with the younger girls and found the enjoyment was always colored with sadness at what they would lose when they were joined. They were intelligent and often beat him in some of the more complex games. But if Sarita and her mother, and his own stepmother were examples, perhaps they didn’t lose that ability.

His father was correct. Recognizing what Sera Marta had explained and how it was practiced was going to change so much. He knew that first he must mend his errors with Sarita. Had he not told his father that this woman might be a companion? Perhaps she might also be a partner in helping Refugio change.