Straining beneath his burden, Inlan rose slowly to his feet. Suddenly the oppressive weight above shifted sharply to one side, nearly knocking him off balance.

"Icy sludge..." he muttered through gritted teeth, barely compensating in time. Without his mechasuit, he had only his own strength to rely on. His arms and legs, already starting to quiver from bearing the load for so long, threatened to give way now that the weight was heavier on the left side than the right.

"Has it been five chips yet?" a woman nearby asked.

"How should I know?" a man's smiling voice replied. "I thought you were timing him."

"Onaka," Inlan growled, keeping his eyes closed so he wouldn't lose concentration. All he had to do for this to end was drop to the floor. The weight machine had safeguards in place so he wouldn't get crushed, but his dignity would be irreparably injured if he gave up in front of the Stratum Protection Officer.

Another few endless moments passed by, until finally a click in the machine sounded, and the weights sprang upwards. Inlan stumbled almost as much from the sudden loss of his burden as he had beneath it, but again managed to catch himself before falling.

Onaka tapped his sleeve and said, "Five chips, forty flakes. Not bad, for a bronze."

Almost six chips! That was longer than any of the others had done. A rush of pride rose within him, and he caught himself smiling as some of the other First Tins in his training group congratulated him.

"Thank you, thank you," he said. He started to dip into a low bow, but his stomach ached too much from the exercise, so he simply nodded with great solemnity.

Onaka reached up to retrieve the extra weight he had tossed onto Inlan's load, then started walking towards the center of the training room. Making a quick circle with his finger, he said, "Four laps to cool down."

Most of the group started right away, but Inlan hung back to stretch his aching muscles before beginning his jog. One of the others, a silver, bumped him hard from behind as he passed. Caught off guard and off balance, Inlan did topple over this time, landing on his hands and knees on the mat floor.

Soft snickers reached his ears. He looked up in time to catch the silver who had knocked him over laughing at him over his shoulder.

"Session's not over yet, Inlan," Onaka called from the middle of the large room. Then, raising his voice to make it clear his words were meant for everyone, he said, "Make that five laps."

Any audible protests would only add to their workload, but Inlan saw more than a few sets of eyes glare in his direction. As if it was his fault he had been shoved to the ground.

What the sludge do I have to do to make everyone go back to normal? he wondered angrily as he started his run. If fathering two sets of twins wasn't enough to earn back the respect of all of his crewmates, what was?

Someone fell into step beside him, and for a moment Inlan thought it was the same silver who'd pushed him. But when he realized who it actually was, he almost tripped yet again.

"Commander Hoff!"

"At ease, First Tin," said the commander, giving him a calm nod.

Inlan glanced around. The other First Tins were all far ahead of him on the track that ran along the perimeter of the large training room, though several were glancing back at him and the commander. Onaka was still in the middle, chatting casually with a few other Squad members who had been training on their own.

"I hear you've requested to be released from your schedule to participate in an Earthan orchestra."

The commander spoke with ease, and Inlan tried not to sound too winded when he replied. "Squad, Commander. Tierney's sister, Clementine, runs it. They're missing an instrument, and my nubla can serve as a substitute. I delivered the instrument a week ago, hoping they could find a suitable musician to play it, but Clementine was firm in her desire for me to join them."

"Stratum Emmot has voiced concern over you spending so much time with Earthans, especially females, after what happened with Tausson, and given your particular circumstances."

Particular circumstances?

He must mean that I'm a bronze without a mate.

The thought stung more than Inlan would have expected. He'd worked with the man for five years, and couldn't remember doing anything that would justify that comment. Lutari had been gone for three months for her first birthing, and no one had acted like this towards him. Was this really all because of Tierney and Tausson?

He was about to defend himself, when Hoff said, "The American Vice President is missing."

Staring at the commander's back, Inlan realized he had stopped running. Quickly returning to Hoff's side, he said, "This is obviously not public information."

"It is for the Earthans," said the commander, "but only senior Squad officers are aware of the situation. At first, many on the cart suspected us of being involved with his disappearance somehow, but a group calling themselves Humans Right publicized an audio wave claiming it as an act of negotiation." Hoff's lip curled slightly on the word. "They are holding him unless we allow teams of Earthan representatives on every vessel and teach them about our technology."

Inlan's stomach churned at the thought. Relican Squad members were taught early on to limit their exposure to other species, to avoid cultural contamination. It was actually one of their Prime Rules: avoid aliens; remain Relican. Only senior officers dealing with first contact, and those assigned Asteroid Mates, ever truly interacted with them. Having Tierney and President Freeland on board had really put everyone on edge. And after Tausson's defection, no one would welcome more visitors.

"We cannot allow a species barely able to master their own technology full access to ours," said the commander. "History is already full of enough gruesome examples of civilizations devastated by technology they weren't ready for. "

Right. That too.

"Only those who hate war should lead armies," Hoff added, quoting from the Passages, "and the Culture Report makes it clear that these Earthans love war too much."

"Yeah, I was surprised when the Earthans were selected for relocation," said Inlan. "They've got a fascinating diversity of cultures and beliefs, but almost everything about their society is so remedial. I mean, a currency-based economy that places personal wealth at odds with social and technological progress? Come on."

"The Report you helped assemble gave a positive recommendation."

Though there was no edge to the words, the intense gaze directed at Inlan reminded him that he wasn't just sifting the sand with one of the other First Tins. This was the commander of the Irral, flagship of the Relican Squad. And though Hoff was usually a pretty relaxed kind of guy, that didn't mean he wouldn't give demerits for questioning a superior officer's judgment.

They ran almost an entire lap in silence, and Inlan worried his tangent had made the commander regret seeking him out. He considered asking more about the Vice President, but decided keeping his mouth shut was the safer course of action. Finally, Hoff continued the conversation.

"Some in the American ruling body have requested Relican assistance in locating the Vice President," he said, "but the President and the majority of the government believe their security agencies should handle the matter -- at least, publicly."

Inlan pressed his lips together, trusting the commander to explain his mysterious statement.

Hoff stopped running, and Inlan gratefully did the same. The rest of Inlan's training group was already gone, and Onaka was nowhere to be found. Inlan wondered how many laps he and the commander had done, though Hoff's steady breathing gave no indication that he was at all tired. Trying to keep his own breath even, Inlan comforted himself with the knowledge that the commander hadn't just borne 10 slabs for almost six chips.

"The Vice President has not been seen since he entered the tunnels seven Earthan days ago," the commander continued, speaking low. "Chief Raleth has refused to provide their agencies with a detailed map of the tunnels, unwilling to risk access to critical areas where they may damage the cart. American security have therefore been focusing their search on locating members of Humans Right, as well as hunting those parts of the tunnels they can access."

With a swift glance to ensure they were still out of earshot of anyone else in the training room, the commander said, "You will join the orchestra."

Although it was what Inlan wanted, he felt little joy at the news. After the revelation about the Vice President, it was obvious this was going to be more of an assignment than a vacation.

"Using that as your cover, you will search the tunnel access passages and transport ranges for the Vice President."

"You really think they could get past the safeguards, Sir?" The transports were programmed to open only to the public subterranean locations, and the doors in each of those locations was similarly programmed not to open unless a transport was on the other side. Overriding those security measures seemed beyond the Earthans' limited capabilities.

"It's a possibility we cannot ignore," said Hoff. "If you find the Vice President, notify me immediately. I will contact the President with the location, and she will take it from there. Do not attempt a rescue. It is crucial that the Earthans retrieve the Vice President, and that none of them are aware of your presence in the tunnels. You are one of five Squad members who has been selected, so you will limit your search to sectors nine through twelve."

"Squad, Commander," he said, wanting to voice his doubts about the mission but unsure how to do so without seeming insubordinate.

His struggle must have been evident, however, for the commander asked, "You have qualms?"

"I'm sure you've thought of this, Sir, but why don't we secretly send teams from Protection to search? They'd probably find him quicker than a handful of us spread out over twenty sectors, and the Earthans would never know."

"Both the President and Chief Raleth rejected that suggestion. If Earthan security does figure out how to access the tunnel chambers, they could encounter our teams, which would be viewed as a transgression on our part."

Inlan nodded, preparing to be dismissed, but Hoff's silver lips thinned, and for the first time Inlan caught a hint of uncertainty in the commander's eyes. Inlan forced himself not to look away, though inwardly he was squirming under the sudden, inexplicable scrutiny.

"It would be ruinous for Relica," the commander began, his words hardly audible, "if another member of the Squad were discovered engaging in unacceptable behavior."

Was he talking about getting caught in the tunnels? It was the only explanation that made sense, but the commander was no longer meeting his gaze, and there was a hint of sadness to his words that made Inlan think he was missing something.

"Squad, Commander," he said, unable to think of anything else to say.

With a firm nod the commander started towards the hatch that led to the prime corridor. Inlan headed to the showers, his mind already drifting to how excited Clementine would be when he showed up for rehearsal.