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Jonas Henrich, on Henrich-4
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After eating two apples for breakfast, I surveyed the horrible damage wrought by the quakes. The mine entrance had collapsed, burying all but one of the minerbots. Rain had pooled there and I knew the sticky mud it made would eventually dry, requiring me to dig through something hard as limestone to get the other five out. Ordering the remaining bot to dig the others out before it dried would probably trap it in the swampy muck with the others.
Both mass drivers and the three refinerbots that hadn't been totally destroyed would need major repairs. My medbed was wrecked beyond salvage when the house's main roof beam and a brick wall had fallen on it. The machine shed collapsing had squashed my flyer and the transporter flat as pancakes, too. Two agbots had been on Goat Island and Pig Island looking after my livestock, so I'd have no idea about their status until I could go check them. One near the orchard had been crushed by a large pine tree, but thankfully the two in the garden still worked.
I was conflicted when I saw the two dormitories were intact. They had far, far more living space than I needed, but reminded me of the crowd of scientists and explorers who would be there in two years. I moved my mattress and my few other intact belongings to the dorm closer to the mud bog which used to be a mine.
I used the crawler's crane to move large pieces of the repair shop's roof and walls. I was happy to see my sat-terminal had survived and was showing new images from the satellite in orbit high above. Minutes later I was deeply saddened to notice Pig Island was missing! Apparently the powerful quakes had caused it to sink into the sea. I felt serious loss for the cute little piglets I'd put there only a few weeks before.
The worst discoveries of all were seeing my fusion mini-reactor and Ansible were down. With no Ansible, there was no way for me to let anyone know what had happened, or even send a distress signal! Without fusion power, I'd only have half a dozen solar panels for electricity. I could either keep my lovebot going and use a few small devices, or produce enough hydrogen to run a single agbot. I would either have entertainment and a companion, or food. The choice was painful but obvious. I was no farmer and starving wasn't an option. I set up the solar panels and plugged in the hydrolyzer. Once it started to refill the hydrogen tank, I rebuilt a smaller version of the poultry barn and moved the birds out of the land crawler.
After a simple supper, I discussed the situation with DeeDee. She said, "I have nine hours of battery power left, Daddy. Since you won't be able to recharge me, maybe you want to make love to me before I go. My programming makes me naive and innocent, so I can't ask for anything sexual. But I'll do whatever you ask, Daddy. I love you."
I thought about her household task programs and wondered about times when I might need her to repair clothing or do other things I was unskilled at. "That's sweet, Deedee, but I need to save you for more important things. I'll see you soon." I hugged her and pressed her power button, then sat her in a corner of my new dorm room home.
I decided I should try learning by watching the agbot and help it. Once I had a decent amount of food stockpiled, I'd try to repair the reactor and Ansible.
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Teri / Stick, on Egalitaria B, remembering his past
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Eating an unappetizing meal bar reminded me of how bad but precious I thought my first one was. All the way back then I was only a little boy of 6. I'd been terrified, hungry, and confused. I didn't understand what famine, disease, or toxins were at the time. I just knew a woman in a gray uniform had picked me up and taken me from my home, leaving my dead parents in their bed.
I still have a tattoo behind my left ear from that week, "LOR-3-NE2". It stands for where I was born, planet Lorent-3, continent Nibo, eastern half of sector 2. I could get it removed if I wanted, but I wear it proudly as a badge of honor. Most of the sector's population had succumbed to starvation, illness, or polluted water by the time my parents did. It was the first area of the planet struck by environmental tragedy. Now, less than twenty years later, the whole planet is barren and uninhabitable. Seemingly, impatient greed was more important to those in charge, than preserving our home world so people could keep living there. That extreme level of idiocy boggles my mind every time I think about it.
The lady in gray carried me to the back of a big vehicle and sat me in her lap. I got some peanut butter crackers and water, once I ran out of tears and quit sobbing. I hadn't eaten in a long time, days, so the crackers and the intensely sweet candies she gave me meant a lot. Other than her being the first person I'd ever seen with blue eyes or pale skin, I don't recall much of her appearance. Emotionally, I still remember her as some sort of angel from the old legends. Without her, I would have perished within days.
I soon believed the next female I met was pure evil. A man at the Refugee Center led me to a tent with only a mattress, a few blankets, and two other kids. When he left, I did what I thought was a very grown-up thing by offering my hand and politely saying, "Hello. My name is Terry."
The caramel-skinned and dark-haired girl sitting near the door stood and loomed over me, being a head taller and plump instead of nearly emaciated like I was. She scoffed and rudely said, "You look like a burnt stick. Stay away from me, understand? Get away!" She shoved my chest and I stumbled backward into a much smaller girl.
I held my hands up in self-defense and hurriedly replied, "Understand! I understand!"
