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Everyone Takes a Test
from the book: Life Will Get You in the End:
Short stories by David Satterlee
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| Life Will Get You in the End: Short Stories by David Satterlee |
Everyone Takes a Test
Althon was new to the colony planet. He had arrived at
Spaceport Delta near Nuk d’Faln just after local sunrise. There was a muted
bustle typical of a full-time operation in the diffuse pink-tinged amber light
of dawn while the rest of the city was still yawning.
Althon was booked with a tour group that was bound for the
interior where they hoped to experience the region’s dramatic geography, exotic
animals, and authentic primitive culture.
We can simply agree that the day’s cross-country travel by
rail and cart was tedious, uncomfortable, and tiring. That night, the travelers
arrived hungry. They were herded by the travel host into a large room – already
occupied by locals who had evidently finished their evening meal and stayed for
conversation and music… and to examine this next batch of tourists. The locals
had rearranged themselves to accommodate the arriving group. Five musicians in
a corner were playing lively tunes that allowed talkers to hear each other
while pairs and quads danced at a moderate pace to a complicated rhythm.
A quiet man by nature, Althon took a seat at an empty table
along a wall near the boundary between locals and visitors. He noticed that
most people comfortably spoke a mix of local language and Commercial Common.
Forms were passed around to determine what special foods and beverages they
would expect. Althon left his blank.
A steward collected the forms and paused in front of Althon
to
