Sacrifice

Chapter 35 - The Attempt

Kalli was blown away by the size of the operation and the thoroughness by which every small detail was attended to. Bhirdan laughed at her multitude of questions and finally began calling workers more qualified then he to come answer them for him. The entire operation would transport several thousand settlers to the adjacent planet and provide for them enough materials to establish a colony there. It would be at least a year before more supplies could be sent, if not longer. Wide-eyed, Kalli was determined to take in every detail, which is why she was brought short in one of the engine rooms.

"What are those?" she asked, pointing to engineering schematics that were remarkably similar to the ones she had taken from her father's desk.

Bhirdan's chest puffed up slightly, this was a question he was partially qualified to answer.

"Those are part of the engine schematics," he explained. "Specifically, this portion is dedicated to the exhaust manifolds. When the ships take off, their fuel will produce a large amount of toxic gas that needs to be disposed of safely. It took a while, but we managed to find a way to shunt it all down into underground caverns. After the competition was run, we had a group that came up with a way to greatly decrease the toxicity of the output."

Kalli inspected the drawings more closely and realized that they were not exact replicas of the drawings she had taken. Rather there was one area that was different. She was wondering if she ought to say something when they were interrupted. A man with shadowed eyes and stooped shoulders came and bowed to Bhirdan.

"Yousef," Bhirdan greeted the man. "May I introduce you to Lady Kallistrate al Aratina? Kalli this is Yousef, my head of project and an essential piece of this operation."

Yousef bowed to Kalli looking decidedly grey. "My Lord Prince, I ..." The man swallowed hard and his hands trembled.

Bhirdan frowned. "What's wrong Yousef? I've never seen you in such a state."

Yousef handed Bhirdan a data pad with a shaking hand. "I regret to inform you, my Lord Prince, that I must tender my resignation for this project." Yousef's voice was shaking but he rushed on. "I realize that this means the end of my career, that I'll be locked out of the field of engineering, perhaps any well-paying field, for the rest of my life. But I must."

# # #

Bhirdan was stunned by the devastating announcement, but before he could say anything he realized that Yousef was not ill, simply very, very afraid. Kalli was looking between him and Yousef as if unsure what to do.

"I realize that I'm frequently difficult to work with," Bhirdan said. "Does that have something to do with your resignation?"

Yousef shook his head so hard that Bhirdan was afraid that he was going to pull a muscle.

"Then why do you wish to leave?"

Yousef looked stunned by the question. "My daughter is ill. I wish to see her before ... If she is too ... I need to be with her." He whispered. "This may be my last chance."

Bhirdan felt almost as ill as Yousef looked when he realized that Yousef had been putting off seeing his dying daughter out of fear of Bhirdan's retaliation.

"Of course you must go to your family. There will be no ill effect on your career or job prospects I assure you. Where does your family live?"

"In the Heyoun mountain settlement, my Lord," Yousef managed to stutter.

"I understand that medical care is difficult to come by in those settlements?" Bhirdan asked with a frown.

"It is, my Lord," Yousef answered. "But my wife is responsible for the care of her elderly parents, and that is where they live."