Lottie was the first one to ask the important question.
“How are we supposed to do that? Do you just need to touch it and say tame? Do we need to knock them unconscious or trap them?” She looked at the bracelet as if expecting it to start speaking to them.
Marcus shrugged.
“I have no idea how this thing works. We were lucky that Mavis figured out how to make the map work. But I have no idea how to tame the dinosaurs.”
As soon as he finished his sentence, a green light bloomed in the bracelet. A moment later, the hologram of the alien appeared before them. She was very clearly a hologram, as the quality of the image flickered as Marcus stepped back and raised his hand defensively. Her appearance immediately attracted the attention of the entire tribe, and seconds later the entire clearing was silent.
“Hello, tribe 13,748.” It was very strange to hear regular English come out of the mouth of a creature that was clearly making clicking sounds, but that was honestly so low on the list of things that mattered at this point that Jack was almost worried that he had gotten a concussion. The rest of the tribe blinked, and seeing that no outburst was coming the alien continued speaking.
“I heard your request to know more about how to use the device you have been gifted. You have already successfully used the features of the map, but once you have used it multiple times it will start to gather additional information about the surrounding area. This can take the form of further ranged scans, or more detailed scans that will help you find additional resources like metal veins in caves or salt deposits. The less energy the scan spends on mapping out your local area, the more it can focus on its secondary functions.” Marcus glanced down at the map charm attached to the bracelet and nodded. Jack moved to get a clear view of the alien.
“Thank you for the tip. We will make sure to use it when it is charged again. Do you have a way to tell when it will be ready for use?” Markus asked.
The birdlike alien shook its head in a very human manner.
“Sadly we had to cut down on many of the support and quality of life features of the devices in order to produce the required number quickly. It should take one full day-night cycle, but you will know when it is ready when the mapping token is no longer cool to the touch.”
Marcus nodded, but Jack noticed that Mavis had approached the group beside him and her eyebrows were pinched. That was usually a sign that she was frustrated or suspicious of someone. He stepped beside her and they two exchanged a glance. She returned her attention to the alien but said nothing.
“The term taming is not accurate to what the device does. It will not suddenly make the creature you are attempting to domesticate tame and docile, nor will it place it fully under your control like a slave. Instead, think of it like a bond. You will be able to sense the creature's emotions when touching it, and it will sense yours. It will manipulate the minds of the animals to make you seem like the leader of their herd, pack, or relative family unit. There are two major exceptions to this rule, however. Some creatures cannot be bonded with, but they are rare and you are unlikely to encounter them any time soon unless you begin migrating south. These are creatures who are completely solitary, and abandon their young at birth and do not care for them in any way. The only bond these creatures have towards their own kinds are the yearly mating urges, and once those urges are fulfilled the pair usually fight to the death. Fortunately, these creatures are few and far between. The largest populations of them are in the oceans. The second example that breaks the rules are large insects, like the massive spider that your tribe killed earlier today. Insect brains do not process emotion the same way as other species. To use the bond on them you would effectively take the place of a queen in their colonies. They would be more or less at your beck and call like slaves.” She seemed to think for a moment, debating if she wanted to elaborate.
“There is much debate about whether or not insects have free will at all. But just know that bonding with one is much more like using a computer program than dealing with a real creature. Personally, I would avoid it, but I understand that sometimes the choice is not so simple to dismiss when you are in a life-and-death situation.”
At this point Mattock and the people he had left the clearing with returned. Silently passing through the trees with their spears raised as the silence from the tribe had clearly spooked them. Jack saw Mattock and Marcus’s eyes meet and Mattock shook his head in the negative. The young woman who had run away from the Baryonyx was not with them. Marcus frowned and turned his attention back onto the alien.
“Will the bonded dinosaurs only see me as their ally? Or the entire tribe?” He asked. The alien’s face was difficult to read, but it looked to Jack like she smiled.
“That is a wonderful question. The device keeps a record of those who have given you their loyalty. You met the minimum requirement of followers to be awarded a device, and they have been cataloged in the device on your wrist.” She waved her feathered hand, and a fourth charm appeared on the bracelet in a flash of green light, as if by magic. It had the shape of a simple person, reminding Jack of the symbol used for men's room back on earth.
“You can use that to pull up a list of each tribe member. It should help you in organizing things. Simply request to see your Tribe Log.”
Marcus nodded respectfully to the alien and examined the new charm. Wasting no time in speaking the command that seemed to come to him.
“Tribe log.”
A glowing green screen appeared before him, with twenty-three names listed. Beside each name was a profession, and a picture of the tribe members' faces. Marcus used his finger to select Gordon’s name, the screen loaded for a moment, then produced an expanded list of information about him. Height, weight, eye and hair color, blood type, ethnicity, and whether or not he could read or speak the tribe's primary language which was labeled as US English. Marcus exited the expanded menu and looked over the names.
Tribe Log
Tribe Name: Tribe 13,748
Tribe Members: 23
* Marcus Wright - Profession: Tribe Leader
* Gordon Gears - Profession: Second in Command
* Mattock Finch - Profession: Lead Hunter
* Jack Wilson - Profession: Warrior
* Mavis Martin - Profession: Wise Woman
* Clara Green - Profession: Warrior
* Skye Hollows - Profession: Lead Gatherer
* Ms Margaret Poulet - Profession: Cook
* Haden Caine - Profession: Hunter
* Lottie McDougall - Profession: Doctor
* Soren McDarcy - Profession: Scout
* Justin Norman - Profession: Farmer
* Jade Rysler - Profession: Organizer
* Nathaniel Greer - Profession: Hunter
* Miles Brimer - Profession: Builder
* Lennox Miller - Profession: Complainer
* Taressa Lum - Profession: Gatherer
* Earl Jenkins - Profession: Gatherer
* Cora Peterson - Profession: Gardener
* Maple Smith - Profession: Gatherer
* James Brave - Profession: Unassigned
* Roy Brave - Profession: Unassigned
* Laura Heart - Profession: Unassigned
Jack squinted at the list, and immediately noticed several important things. Most obvious was that less than half of the people present had been officially acknowledged as tribe members by the alien artifact. The idea that a group could have come back with a dinosaur the tribe thought was tamed only for it to attack the people not on the list sent shivers through his spine. From the sickly look on some of the other's faces, he wasn’t the only one who had that realization.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
Secondly was the professions. Some of them were obvious and made sense, Marcus was the tribe leader and was listed as such, Miles had told Marcus that he had construction experience and was studying engineering so him being listed as a builder made sense. So did Lottie being named tribe doctor. But it was clear to everyone that Gordon being second in command was a shock, even to him. Though Marcus didn’t seem surprised. Jack guessed that the list was based on what Marcus thought each person's profession was, which explained why Mattock was listed as a hunter, and Lennox the obnoxious artist had his job listed as a complainer. That meant that the device could somehow read Marcus’s thoughts, which was worrying for a number of reasons. Marcus looked at the list, and with pinched eyebrows and a wave of his hand, he changed the professions and the way the list was ordered to his preferences. The new list was easier to read.
Tribe Log
Tribe Name: Tribe #13,748
Tribe Members: 23
* Marcus Wright - Profession: Tribe Leader
* Gordon Gears - Profession: Second in Command - Hunter
* Jade Rysler - Profession: Third in Command - Gatherer
* Mattock Finch - Profession: Lead Hunter
* Skye Hollows - Profession: Lead Gatherer
* Miles Brimer - Profession: Builder - Hunter
* Mavis Martin - Profession: Wise Woman - Gatherer
* Ms Margaret Poulet - Profession: Cook - Gatherer
* Lottie McDougall - Profession: Doctor - Hunter
* Justin Norman - Profession: Farmer - Gatherer
* Nathaniel Greer - Profession: Hunter
* Jack Wilson - Profession: Hunter
* Clara Green - Profession: Hunter
* Soren McDarcy - Profession: Hunter
* Haden Caine - Profession: Hunter
* Taressa Lum - Profession: Gatherer
* Earl Jenkins - Profession: Gatherer
* Cora Peterson - Profession: Gatherer
* Maple Smith - Profession: Gatherer
* Lennox Miller - Profession: Gatherer
* James Brave - Profession: Unassigned
* Roy Brave - Profession: Unassigned
* Laura Heart - Profession: Unassigned
Marcus quickly sorted everyone he knew into hunter or gatherer, leaving the unassigned people for when he had time to meet with the people involved and judge if they could handle the stress of being hunters. He also standardized the professions. Jack wasn’t sure if there would need to be a difference between warrior and hunter, but for now, the difference was meaningless. They could wield a spear, or a club in his case, and they would fight to protect the tribe. Using the same terms and not making a difference between the two tasks was probably the right call for group cohesion, but long term it could cause problems. Jack could see someone like Soren being okay with hunting, but the younger man might not be able to take a life when it mattered.
Jack glanced at Mavis, and she looked worried. She had been wearing her suspicious face since he first noticed her moving behind Marcus. As the tribe muttered around them about the professions and the fact that so many were missing from the list, Jack moved beside her and bent to ask his question.
“What's wrong?” He tried to keep his voice low, but Gordon was behind him and clearly heard his question. He pulled both Jack and Mavis into a huddle.
“They know too much about us. Their story isn’t adding up.” Gordon said, and Mavis glanced over her shoulder to look at the Alien hologram. It was still focused on Marcus, as he let the tribe examine the log. One person who was not on the list spoke to him, and a new name was added to the log. Mavis looked back to Jack and Gordon and nodded.
“It wouldn’t be hard for them to grab a picture of us, but to get our blood type, and weight, they either need far more access to the planetary AI than they claimed to have, or they have such advanced technology that they can scan us from orbit. Or maybe from the bracelet. I don’t trust them.” She whispered and Jack frowned as he thought it through.
“I hadn’t thought of that, too focused on the fact that they could somehow read Marcus’s mind. I mean, how else can he change the jobs on the tribe log with just a wave? Maybe they can read all our minds and that's how they are getting the information?” He looked to Gordon, who shook his head.
“No, that was my old weight, from before the twins. I have lost a good five pounds since then. It also didn’t catch that I can speak Spanish.” Gordon said, causing Mavis and Jack to share a glance.
“Dude, your Spanish is worse than mine. And I can barely count to ten.” Jack said, and Gordon looked mock offended. They all shared a small chuckle, but the unease of the situation was hard to move past.
“I think they either got the information from Earth databases, meaning they went there and recovered as many records as they could, or they have more access than they claim. Either way, why not give us the tribe log from the beginning? It feels like a trap. If we had tamed that Baryonyx for example, it would have gone wild and killed more people just because we didn’t know they were not technically in the tribe.” Mavis shivered again, and Jack put his hand over hers for comfort. She took it easily.
“We should continue on assuming they are watching us at all times. I think something is going on behind the scenes up there. But it ultimately is a problem for later. Right now we have to focus on getting through each day.” Gordon said, and both Mavis and Jack nodded. They broke the huddle, and Jack returned his gaze to the Alien again. Marcus had asked another question, but it seemed like they hadn’t missed much.
The more Jack thought about the situation, the more suspicious of the Aliens he became. He tried to understand this alien's body language, her mannerisms had been oddly human. And she had definitely smiled when Marcus had asked the question about who was considered part of the tribe and seemed relieved that they hadn't fallen into the trap of bringing a dino into a group of people who were not in the tribe. But why had that been a trap? Why didn’t the aliens tell them about it from the beginning? Instead, they had waited for the tribe to ask. They obviously had the tribe log feature prepared and were just waiting for the opportunity to give it to them. But why not include it from the start? Jack could only guess, and none of the options his mind came up with were good. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up like he was being watched.
“To answer your original question though.” The alien continued.
“To use the bond, you must touch the dinosaur you are trying to bond with and speak the command aloud. Saying tame, bond, domesticate, or anything similar will work, so long as your intentions are clear to the device. The dinosaur you are trying to tame must either be fully calm around you, or be in a state where they cannot fight back. Such as trapped or unconscious. Keep in mind that a trapped dinosaur can be bonded with, but it will take considerably more energy to do so, and thus the device will take longer to recharge. I suggest using food to gain the trust of the dinosaurs before trying to tame them. The more at ease they are, the easier it will be. Are there any questions?”
Gordon spoke up before Marcus could say anything.
“I have a wife who was not with me when we arrived. Is she on the planet? Or in stasis with our children?” His tone had a hint of fear mixed into it. And several others in the crowd perked up to ask questions about their own families. The alien raised her hand to quiet them.
“My time is limited, I have to give similar speeches to three thousand more tribes and I can only spend so long with each. What is your wife’s name? I will check my records and allow one more question before I must leave.”
The crowd murmured with discontent, but Marcus silenced them with a fearsome look. Gordon spoke up.
“Her name is Ellie Gears. She was with our children when we were taken.” His tone was desperate, hope and despair mixed on a knife edge.
The alien looked to her side, clearly checking something out of view of the hologram. Then turned back to Gordon.
“She is in stasis. I will add her to the list of people to be released when your tribe has built a base that meets the requirements, alongside your offspring.” She nodded to Gordon, and the sympathy in her eyes was clear to see.
“However” She continued, her tone suddenly more professional. Jack got the sense her boss was listening to her. “She is also listed for release to her elder brother should he be in a position to receive her. Sadly we do not have a fair way to make sure everyone is able to perfectly be repositioned. I suggest haste in establishing your settlement.”
Gordon was at first relieved by her words, but the idea of losing his wife to being slow to settle safely seemed to weigh heavily on him. Jack could see the fear and the determination in his eyes. The alien turned and addressed the rest of the tribe.
“I suggest you all give the names of your loved ones to your tribe leader. I will be able to contact him for longer conversations in the future. And I do not want you to miss out on the information if I return when you are out hunting or exploring.” She then turned to Marcus.
“I have time for a single question.”
Marcus glanced at Mattock who shrugged, then to Mavis who was visibly thinking as fast as she could and looked like she had a thousand questions. She was counting on her fingers, and muttering under her breath. Marcus gave her a moment, and she looked up with a fiery curiosity in her eyes.
“Is there a way to learn more about the dinosaurs using the artifact? We have the ability to see what food is safe for us but not for them. We also don’t even know what some of them are called or how to properly care for them. Can the artifact help us learn anything like that?”
The alien's smile was almost giddy and she hopped from foot to foot.
“Yes yes. Wonderful. Here.” She waved her hand and a fifth charm appeared on Marcus’s bracelet. It was shaped like a magnifying glass.
“The encyclopedia. Good question. You know how to ask the right ones. You are the first tribe to unlock that one.” With a pleased chirp, the alien hologram vanished.
Mavis looked from Marcus to Jack and Gorden, she seemed pale. Jack had a bad feeling she had figured out another piece of what was going on.