“It’s okay.” She knew she’d done nothing wrong, would change nothing if she were put in that position again. Nevertheless, she was shadowed by a sense of guilt. She was the captain; she’d been at the controls. Somehow, things should have been managed differently. She could probably have gone down on the beach without hurting anyone. Or maybe even made it into the trees.

“You know,” said Beth, “it’s true. Feeling tired is one of the early signs of not eating properly. So’s being cranky.”

“That’s a bit scary,” said Hutch. “How long does it take before we have a serious problem?”

“I don’t know how much nutrition we’re getting. And to be honest, I don’t know much about starvation. I’ve never had to deal with it. But if you’re not taking in any decent food at all, the symptoms can show up pretty quickly. We’re getting some nutrition. And we’re filling our stomachs, so we don’t feel hungry. But I suspect we’re missing some of what we need.”

“Heads up,” said Ken. “Here comes Arin.” Kwylla was with him.

“That’s all we need,” said Derek. “I hate to admit this, but I’m getting tired trying to learn Volarian. I was never good at foreign languages, and this one just drives me crazy.”

“He’s got a box.” Ken got out of his chair and offered it to Kwylla. She thanked him and sat.

Their faces were alight with good news. They were both making the creaking floorboard sounds, which was their way of delivering an energetic hello when life was good. Arin said, “Hello.” And continued in English: “We are ready to go after the lander.”

The box was wooden, small, about the size of a loaf of bread. He put it on the floor and sat down on the sofa. Then he opened it. And removed something that looked like an oxygen mask!

They all stared while he and Kwylla sat grinning. Arin picked up the mask and held it out for Hutch.

She took it and held it against her face. It was a decent fit. And she realized why, when they were on the boat, Arin had used a shirt to measure her skull. “Why?” she looked at him. “We know where the lander is. You don’t think I can make the repairs underwater, I hope?”

Ken passed the question to Arin, who responded on his own: “We must know where to connect the lines. Need you to show us. Be safe.”

“All right,” she said. “Is there an oxygen tank to go with this?”

“Yes,” said Arin. He took the mask back.

“When do we do this?”

Kwylla smiled and surprised everyone: “Two days.” She held her hands out, in a nonverbal cue that Hutch associated with preachers. Have faith.

•  •  •

“At last,” Derek said after Kwylla and Arin had left.