"How so?"
"Art communicates a lot about a people. Their dreams. Desires. Goals."
"What of the Rhimodians? What kind of art do you make?"
He paused for a beat before responding. "We do not make art."
"So you don't have desires and goals?"
"Logically, no, we do not."
The silence grew between them. Freya looked outside to the fields of blue grass and other planted crops. The structures were symmetrical and exacting. Perfectly aligned rows of plants filled the sections for each crop.
There was an order and a precision to their planting.
That, she supposed, could be considered art.
She finished her cup of tea and glanced at the data he was working on. "So, what is our status now?"
"Searching for life signs on the surface."
"Where are they?"
This did make him look at her. "There are not any."
"Where are your people? Or the Charro? There must be more of them running around. Two is a very small number. Most Charro travel in teams of four or five, and all likely have the bio-tech. Though no bio-tech is perfect. Surely they can be traced."
"You are correct. Even bio-tech gives some kind of reading." He shook his head, and for a second, Freya thought he looked exasperated. "There is nothing."
"If we are alone, then we are safe, for the moment," she said. It sounded optimistic. Hopeful, even. If It was true, she'd be able to somewhat comply with Veta's orders to stay put and be found.
He shook his head. "We are not alone here."
"How can you be certain? You just said there was nothing."
"If we were alone, scans would show certain types of readings, like clear signs of any kind of natural life. My scans show nothing. It is logical to conclude that our scans are being blocked. Therefore, we are not alone on this moon."
His words clicked into place. And the truth was significantly more dangerous.
"The Terrans are here," she whispered. And she doubted it was a rescue party, not after what she'd seen in space. As much as she hated believing it, her own people were attacking her.
Had they found out about her getting into the system? Were they after her only or the entire group?
He nodded. "We have to be ready for them."
The war that never ends. She really wanted to be wrong, that the war would actually be able to stop. An entire generation had never known what it was like to live outside of a war state.
The hope that Freya had clung to, even when her more pragmatic side laughed at her, diminished. The sensible side was always ready to go to work.
She squared her shoulders. "What kind of defenses does this facility have?"
The cyborg watched her. His expression didn’t change, but she knew he could see the change in her. Or observe it. Or whatever it was that he drew his data from.
"It was not designed as a military instillation. It is a command center for the farming bots on the islands in this sector of the moon. Weather is the primary threat."
She nodded. "There must be some way to fortify this place."
"There are options," he said.
