Banished! — 16: Explorers Return

Iggy’s bright red locks glinted in the morning light as Matt walked toward the back of the ship to greet Carson. The explorers were an exuberant group as they got off the boats. Iggy was securing the watercraft, grinning just as widely as the returning crew. It was obvious they were telling everyone who could hear what they’d found.

Matt frowned. He would have preferred to make his decisions before informing the other ship’s crew and all the colonists about the new discovery. He knew it would do no good to order everyone at the docking scene to maintain silence about what they’d found. They wouldn’t be able to keep from talking now. At least, Abdallah’s Captain shouldn’t know exactly what was going on here, although Matt was sure that through his own binoculars, he could guess something unusual was happening.

Matt looked at the slightly nearer Balboa. None of their boats were on the water, and even their holds remained closed. That had to mean something. Perhaps its Captain wasn’t in on any conspiracy. Perhaps any aggressive moves would come solely from the more-distant ship. If that was so, Matt needed to speak with the Balboa’s Captain, to see if she would stay totally neutral, or perhaps welcome a joint defensive stance between their two ships. An open alliance so early might make the Abdallah Captain think twice before moving against them. Matt decided to…