On the Rim, Ch 36: Sandra Has No Time For Second-Guessing
Story by comidacomida on SoFurry
Welcome to Chapter 36 of "On the Rim"! This is a short story series based on a computer game I am playing called "Rim World". Rim World is a really cool indie game that accommodates an amazing array of mods that allow me to create a setting very similar to my story world in which several of my stories take place including "Fathom's Phantoms", "The Farlight Initiative", an "Paid in Kind".
We are once again back to single-chapter posts and Sandra leads us off on this one. Not only does this chapter include Sandra's response as a manager who lost an employee, but it also provides some humanizing moments of how she deals with it, as well as how she keeps busy. Reading closely, you might also find a double-helping of foreshadowing. So... what next? Here are the options:
A) Kurta spends the morning in the wilds with Desiree and is the victim of another wild animal attack; she then has to explain herself to the Overseer while being treated by Doc.
B) Missy enjoys the company of her friends around the cave system until the valley comes under attack, and the opposition this time is far greater than a simple tribal raiding party.
C) Cole spends the morning with his usual activities, encounters Leo and an uncomfortable discussion, and then is forced to play the hero when the base is attacked, but pays a price for it.
D) Myra shows Doc more about cooking, continues making meals, then gets drafted to help defend the cave system against a dangerous assault.
E) Claw spends some time reflecting on life, Ben, and the rest of the group, but doesn't hesitate to enter into the fray when the cave system is attacked by a powerful force.
F) Duct-Tape works to continue fixing up possible electrical short locations within the base but, when the survivors lives are put in jeopardy he is called to help face down an attack.
G) Grizz spends the morning with Leo doing an inventory of the items they received, ends up working alone when Leo leaves, then leads a charge against an opposing force that attacks the valley.
Voting won't be available long and no, the decision won't change the events of the story, just how they're presented along with who we get to learn more about via their point of view. As with this post, expect three chapters in the next update.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy "On the Rim"!
On the Rim, Ch 36: Sandra Has No Time For Second-Guessing
2020 copyright comidacomida
Sandra had been a successful and reputable overseer within Relegra ever since she had started with the company. Unlike many, she didn't raise through the ranks of supervisor to lower management before finding a spot as a project Overseer; she had been hired specifically for the position. The vast majority of her assignments resulted in success but she also wasn't unfamiliar with failures-- but she'd never lost an employee.
The death of Benjamin Grotan had affected every member of the group in some way but one thing Sandra knew was that she had to remain the unmoved, stalwart stone to help steady everyone else at the outpost. She'd made it through the rest of the way, held a business meeting and follow-up transaction with visitors to the cave system, and even managed to maintain her composure through dinner.
That didn't have to hold up in private, and she spent the night after Ben's bloody murder in the arms of Chris, crying. She honestly didn't know what she would have if she hadn't had the safe space, and she realized then and there that she hadn't been foolish to establish a relationship; she would have been lost without him.
They talked long into the night and, when she eventually did fall asleep, her dreams haunted her with thoughts of failure, loss, and regret. When she awoke in the morning her eyes were wet again, and she realized that the day would be no less easy. After seeing to Ben's burial, handling the banishment of the apparently unreachable and incurable Lilly, then sending out a scouting party to recover what they could from a freshly fallen piece of the Venture, Sandra had to look around the outpost to see what, if anything, she could do to keep herself busy, lest the negative thoughts return.
She spent the morning doing a circuit of the base, checking in on the various workers as they went about their appointed task. At one point Sandra almost lost her nerve when she encountered Duct-Tape carefully rewiring the main residential hall using the new polymer that Ben had perfected the day before his life was cut short. He had been a good person, and everything felt wrong. The Overseer had to retreat to her room to compose herself after that.
Right around noon, however, something changed. She had heard several descriptions of what the strange buzzing was that had affected the men within the cave system on multiple occasions and, for just a moment, she was worried that whatever had all but incapacitated them with the strange affliction was going to give the 'fairer sex' a chance to experience it too but, suddenly, all of her worries, fears, and sorrow was washed away by something that wasn't quite music, and wasn't quite white-noise. Suddenly relieved of her agonizing self-doubt and aimless concern, the Overseer was table to take a breath and leave her room.
Lizzy met her in the hall; the Cytkus' tail thrashed in good humor, a faint smirk on her scaled hips as she questioned "I guess you're liking the transmission, hmm?"
Sandra couldn't help but smile too, even as her curiosity got the better of her. "What IS this? It feels... liberating."
The laborer stepped in beside the Overseer, following her down the hall. "Well, if you remember, the men have had to deal with the psychic waves, but the other day they mentioned that they were feeling much more relaxed because of it-- this is what they were feeling."
The Human woman tried to connect the dots. "So... these 'broadcasts'--"
Lizzy repeated the phrase she'd used before ."Psychic Drones"
Sandra took it in stride. "This psychic droning... it can affect men AND women? And they can be good or bad?"
The Cytkus nodded. "Good. Bad. Men. Women... they also affect animals sometimes-- make them mellow and docile, or whip them into a frenzy. It all seems random as far as anyone's ever said to me, and I definitely haven't found a pattern."
Reaching the end of the hall, Sandra turned toward the group table in the main tunnel. "And nobody has ever tracked its origin?"
Lizzy followed. "Not all the way, ma'am... it's not a traditional broadcast, but a lot of people who've studied it seem to think it's coming from somewhere far north of here."
The Overseer slowed at the table, turning toward the planning table and the computer system atop it sitting empty; that was where Ben usually spent his time. The reassuring flow of whatever sensation she received from the psychic wave helped her deal with that sorrow-- acknowledging it, then setting it down and letting it float beyond her like a leaf on a stream. She turned toward the Cytkus. "I think I'll be spending some time drafting up plans today. Are you still going on a gathering trip with Duct-Tape and Kurta?"
Lizzy nodded. "Yes ma'am. With Missy out we figured that the three of us should go checking for any wild plants worth harvesting. We've all been here long enough to know what's useful and what's... you know... potentially deadly."
The Cytkus' good-humored smile made the Overseer laugh; perhaps without the soothing wave of the psychic drone she might have thought the statement morbid or dark, but, considering the calming effect she could appreciate it for what it was. "Alright... just get back to us safely, and if there's trouble, you come right back."
Nodding, the laborer departed which left Sandra alone in the large tunnel. Wasting no time focusing on her objective, the Overseer sat down at the work station and began familiarizing herself with the information left behind by Ben. As expected, it was referenced, compiled, and cross referenced to make it easy to review for anyone who might not have had his assistance; Sandra was thankful for that.
She spent some time looking over one of the reports he'd completed regarding the dissection and dismantling of the robot that the recovery team had fought near a piece of the Venture that had fallen some time past. Apparently the Wolf had taken a special interest in the piece because, after being completely removed from the robot and despite having no apparent power source, it still somehow seemed to function. What that function was, he had never been able to figure out, but he'd kept the piece aside, storing it in his room. With her reading on science-mystery complete for the day, she turned her attention toward more applicable pursuits.
An hour passed quickly, and then a second one; Sandra was making progress on figuring out a way to maximize the energy draw while limiting the loss from their generators when her research was interrupted by Lizzy. The Cytkus pushed open the main doors to the cave system and trudged quickly toward the medical station; the Overseer didn't miss the fact that she was dripping blood as she went. Standing immediately, the Human woman moved to assist. "What's wrong? Where are you hurt?"
Lizzy waved her off. "It's fine... we ended up doing some hunting without meaning to. Got caught by surprise and--"
During the time the Cytkus was talking, Sandra did a quick visual inspection and saw the way the Cytkus was holding her left forearm. She interrupted immediately. "How bad is it?"
She was waved away again. "Like I said, it's fine. Duct-Tape wants me getting seen by Doc so it doesn't get infected or anything... it was just a small tusk."
Despite Lizzy's reassurances, Sandra walked her to the med-bay and stayed with the Cytkus and the Doctor throughout treatment, which took all of fifteen minutes. In the end, Chris gave her a relatively clean bill of health. "Alright... cleaned, stapled, and wrapped. You should be okay in a couple of days-- just try to avoid getting into anymore fights with boars until after the staples come out."
Sandra nodded to the Cytkus as she passed, then turned to look at Dr. Zimmerman. "Hunting accident, huh?"
Chris sat down on one of the medical beds and patted the mattress beside himself; the Overseer needed no further invitation. Once they were alone he leaned over and gave her a quick, conservative peck on the cheek. Taking her hand into his, he asked "So... are all of you ladies feeling the not-exactly-music that Myra mentioned?"
Smirking, she nodded. "It started a few hours ago."
Doc smiled. "Well, it seems to be doing you a lot of good. I'm glad."
She couldn't help herself. "Oh? Not jealous that we get soothing not-exactly-music and you get unbearable, distracting droning?"
He smiled wider, bumping her gently with his shoulder. "Nah... I just think of it as evening things out-- after all, you ladies have to deal with menstrual cramps."
Sandra laughed. "Leave it up to a doctor..."
Since neither had anything else pressing on their schedule, she hung out with Chris for the rest of the afternoon. They did a walk-through of the med-bay and he showed her how he'd organized everything, and then discussed some good ideas on how to expand their capabilities if they had the right items-- and he helped her make a shopping list to get them the next time a suitable orbital trader came by.
They joined the rest of the survivors in the main hall, taking a seat at the table to enjoy another one of Myra's meals. Half way through dinner the security team returned with a collection of items bearing the Relegra corporate seal including fresh uniforms. The moods of those around the table improved even more. Sandra welcomed everyone back and encouraged them to take a seat for dinner and leave the sorting for later; salvage was great, but she figured that camaraderie took precedence.