Chapter Five

Devon and Flim had logged their partnership right after the meeting that morning. Jacinda resigned herself to simply accepting whoever was assigned to her. After that the three friends set out to explore the ship. They started with the botanical decks, where the ship’s fresh air was produced. The decks were full of heavily forested tracks, fed by artificial light and a constant mist from the cavernous roof.

“I wonder if Forrestal is anything like this,” Devon asked. Flim shrugged.

“I think it is hotter than this,” Jacinda answered confidently. “Be sure that you have some tropical clothes when we get to the surface, or you will regret it.”

“Oh I packed plenty. We will need it,” Devon agreed.

Flim shrugged again.” I’ll be okay just wearing this.”

Jacinda and Devon were confused by his lack of concern. “Are you sure,” Devon asked.

“Trust me,” Flim answered, wearing a strange grin. Devon and Jacinda laughed at Flim, content to let him have his little secret.

The three friends played in the forest for a while longer, slaying imaginary dragons and discovering make-believe lost civilizations. After a while they began to get hungry. Flim was the first to mention it.

“It’s almost 1 o’clock. What should we do about lunch?”

“I can whistle something up,” Devon suggested. “I don’t feel like going all the way back to the dining deck.”

Jacinda clapped in excitement. “We could have a real picnic.” She had never had a chance to have one before, growing up in the mining colony. Even the botanical deck seemed huge to her.

“That sounds good. I’ll take care of it.” Devon tapped a code into his WristVid. “Lunchtime, Sammy,” he said into it. “Traditional twentieth century American picnic for three. Track this signal for delivery.” The WristVid beeped in assent. “It shouldn’t be too long now. How about a dip in that pond over there while we wait?”

“Zonk! What a great idea!” Flim exclaimed.

Jacinda shook her head. “Not me,” she hesitated. “I don’t have anything to change into. But you go ahead. I’ll just wait here.”

Devon felt bad that he had not thought of that. His own outfit could easily convert into a swim suit. Obviously, Jacinda could not afford anything that fancy.

“Oh, never mind. It was a dumb idea.” Devon waved the thought away. “Anyway, lunch will be here before we know it.”

“No, you go swimming,” Jacinda said. “I’ll be fine. I don’t like swimming anyway.” She hoped that the boys did not figure out that not having a swim suit was not the real reason she did not want to go. She did not know how to swim and it embarrassed her. She just had never had a chance to learn.

Devon hesitated, reluctant to leave Jacinda out of the fun. He peered over at Flim, who had somehow already changed into a snug swim suit. He looked back at Jacinda, who nodded and waved, letting him know that she did not mind.

“Last one in is a Jovian Puffball,” Flim shouted as he raced toward the pond. Casting one last glance at Jacinda, Devon followed with a whoop.

The boys ran full speed toward the pond. Devon, being a very strong runner, made up the distance between he and Flim. They reached the edge of the pond at the same time and leapt forward toward the water. They both landed with surprised grunts as they discovered that the pond was only a foot deep. Deep enough to keep them from hurting themselves, but not deep enough to hide their embarrassment.

Jacinda laughed out loud, her voice carrying all the way to the boys. “I give it a ten out of ten,” she called to Devon and Flim. All three began to laugh. Devon flopped on his back and pretended to do the backstroke. He merely succeeded in splashing water all over Flim. This only caused them all to laugh even harder.

Devon and Flim played in the shallow pool, chasing each other around and pushing each other over when they were caught. They were startled when they were suddenly splashed from behind. Jacinda had taken off her jumpsuit and wore only a short-sleeved unitard. She was splashing them furiously, emitting a high-pitched giggle.

“Take that, boys,” she shouted as she splashed them. Flim took cover but Devon strode imperiously toward the girl, causing her to scream in delight. “No, stop!”

“It’s a bit late for that,” Devon barked in mock anger. “You mess with us and you get wet too. Get ready for the big bath, Missy.”

Jacinda tried to dodge away from Devon but he leapt at her, catching her by the ankle. With a laugh she splashed down into the water, sending all three friends into another fit of laughter.

A shrill chirp interrupted their play. When they looked up, Sammy, Devon’s automatic luggage, was standing next to the pond. Devon jumped to his feet.

“Okay, Sammy, we’ll eat over there by that tree,” Devon instructed, pointing out a large, majestic Oak.

Jacinda stared, “That is Sammy? I thought you were calling your steward or something, not a walking suitcase.”

“I’ve had Sammy as long as I can remember. My parents had him specially made for me. The techs put in voice recognition and added some limited service routines to his programming.” Devon scratched his head self consciously, suddenly uncomfortable. “He is more like a robot than luggage. Sometimes he is the only one I have to talk to…so I probably talk to him too much.” Devon rubbed his hands together, embarrassed by his attachment to Sammy.

“It’s okay,” Jacinda answered, seeing how much it bothered Devon to admit his loneliness. “I just wish I had something so cool.”

The three friends watched Sammy trundle over to the tree and begin setting up the picnic. A compartment opened in his side and a red blanket popped out at the end of a slender mechanical arm. The arm unrolled the blanket and smoothed it out under the tree. Sammy then trundled a few feet from the blanket and set himself down. Once settled, Sammy opened, converting into a short table. The table was set with an assortment of delicious food. The smell of fried chicken filled the air. The table also held slices of sweet looking watermelon. Next to the melon were a plate of sandwiches and a bowl of macaroni salad.

The food seemed strange to Jacinda. On the small asteroid that her mining colony occupied, fresh food was nearly impossible to obtain. It was quite expensive and usually reserved for special occasions. Needless to say, Jacinda and her family usually settled for prepackaged foods brought to the colony on the various ships that delivered supplies and then picked up the ore processed by the colony. She had expected fancy food at the reception last night but was surprised that it was so readily available. She guessed that people as wealthy as Devon simply took this kind of luxury for granted. She did not fault Devon. It was simply what he was used to having.

Devon and Flim piled food on to plastic plates that had popped out Sammy and then fell upon their lunch like hungry dogs. Jacinda hesitated for a moment longer then filled a plate as well. At that moment she made a promise to herself to simply enjoy the trip rather than worry about what it would be like to return to the mining colony were luxuries would be almost impossible to come by.

The food was delicious. They all sat eating, silent except for the occasional murmur of delight at the food. Flim seemed to like the chicken the most. He ate four pieces before Jacinda gave him one of those looks that girls give boys when they are acting badly. Flim took the hint and raided the sandwich plate next.

They finished the meal by each taking a slice of watermelon over to the pond and spitting the seeds as far into the water as they could. Jacinda found that she had a knack for it. She beat the boys handily and giggled as they tried to beat her longest spit.

“What’s wrong, boys? Are going to let a girl beat you?” Jacinda was enjoying the good natured ribbing. Flim and Devon redoubled their efforts. Unfortunately, the harder they tried, the more futile it became. Finally, they ran out of ammunition when they finished the last of the watermelon.

“Wow, that was fun,” Flim said, wiping juice from his chin.

“Thanks for lunch, Devon,” Jacinda said.

Devon nodded, “It was my pleasure.” He was happy to see that for the first time Jacinda did not seem self conscious about accepting his hospitality. He could not imagine how he would feel if their positions were reversed. Devon had always had everything he wanted, except for time with his parents. Jacinda, on the other hand, had little more than her family. He could not help feel that in many ways, she was much luckier than he was.

The meal acted like a sedative on the children. They lay back on the blanket near Sammy, who was no longer a table. There was no sign of the dishes or food anywhere. During the spitting contest, Sammy had cleared away everything and hidden it away somewhere, probably nestled somewhere inside.

The blanket felt so soft under their backs. All three friends fell into a gentle slumber, shaded from the artificial sunlight by the huge Oak. Sammy dutifully stood watch over the three as they napped. It was silly to think that Sammy could be protective of Devon. After all, he was only a piece of luggage, but anyone watching would have sworn that he was guarding the boy.