Water Debt

Sept 19 - Splintered Rock

I returned to Splintered Rock with two objectives in mind.

First, Ardra's file indicated an addiction to spice. If I was lucky enough to locate her I would need some to use as a bargaining chip. If I collected it myself there would be fewer questions, and it would give me a chance to investigate the process of spice harvesting itself.

Second, I could also use the opportunity to explore the desert beyond the settlement and complete my analysis of the planet's defensive situation.

Recently on Splintered Rock, there were reports of an attack on an unarmed civilian cargo ship by extremist group engaging in anti-offworlder activity. The local government were reported as being caught off-guard. If we were to offer military assistance and it was accepted, this would provide the Alliance with the opportunity we needed to gain a foothold on Arrakis and begin a program of control over the spice trade.

But before any Alliance troops set foot on the desert sand, we needed more information: what was the level of threat from the indigenous population? Was the attack an isolated incident? Or the precursor to a larger conflict?

When travelling in the desert, the primary concern is dehydration. The inhabitants of this planet devised an ingenious solution: a suit that recycles the moisture given off in breath, perspiration and the like, and so minimizes the loss of water to the body. They are tight fitting and can be worn beneath other clothing.

The spice itself can be found in deposits within the desert. To locate it, one uses a paracompass worn on the forearm. A sifting device is also necessary to remove any spice one may find from the sand.

So equipped, I set out into the desert.

I walked over dune and rise. I walked past rocky outcrops and across plateaus. On occasion my paracompass gave a hopeful sign but as much as I searched I could not find a spice deposit.

The heat was oppressive. It was not long before my canteens were almost empty and the need to find more water outweighed all other concerns.

I came across a large vaporator where the sand basin met a wall of rock. These devices gather the moisture from the air. There are a number of them scattered throughout Splintered Rock. This one was locked and the code for the public wind traps near the landing pad yielded no results. This however did not dissuade me.

The code to open the vaporator was six digits long. Each digit was one of six possible symbols. This made a total of 46,656 possible combinations. I set to work and broke the code intwo minutes.

Feeling a sense of accomplishment I drained the wind trap, filling my canteens. When I looked up, standing near by was a woman dressed in black watching me at work.

"Hello," I said.

"Hello," the woman replied, "May I be of some assistance?"

"I am trying my hand at harvesting spice." It seemed the right thing to say.

"Have you been able to get any water?" she asked.

"Yes, thank you."

"From this unit?" She seemed surprised.

Uh oh, I thought. "Yes," I replied.

"I haven't tried it yet. Hmm," she said thoughfully.

I introduced myself. "I am Major Pepper Siamendes. I am with the Alliance." It was not a secret.

"It is nice to meet you," she added. "I get very few visitors way out here."

"I was happy to find water, I must say." I tried to gloss over the fact that I had broken into this unit.

"I've been waiting for a while to get to get this unit up and running. The water sellers are all criminals."

"To whom do I have the pleasure of talking with?"

"I am Joan al Jofar. And this is my home. I am the keeper of these sands."

"I am pleased to meet you." It was unavoidable now. I asked, "Ah, did I do wrong taking water from this unit? I didn't realize it was your home..." That was at least the truth of it.

"It's not a very good lock," she remarked. My earlier feeling of achievement evaporated.

"Can I give you something in exchange for the water I removed?"

"That is the way of the desert."

I'll bet it is, I thought. Water is the difference of life and death out here. I was also keenly aware that 65% of body mass was water.

"Then name your price." I took her water. I was committed. I might as well see this through.

"I am the keeper of the Hagga Village to the East. It would please me if you would rent one the houses there. That is my price."

"Agreed," I said at once. "Please lead me to the village."

She led the way up a set of stone steps worn into the rock. They wound up to an archway beyond which sat five two-story houses.

"Each house is rentable with spice. I costs a lot to live out in the desert away from imperial eyes. The price is spice, of course. That is the coin of the deep desert."

"Which house is to be mine?" I asked.

"That is the gift of the desert. You may choose whichever house pleases you."

I selected the house in the middle of the semi-circle. While the pairs of houses on either side where touching each other the middle house stood alone. It afforded the greatest degree of privacy. Yet with a run I could jump from my roof to the houses on either side. It also had a clear view to the entrance to the village.

"I have things I must attend to. If you need anything you may call on me."

"And do you live here too?" I asked.

"I live up there." She pointed to structure on a higher plateau reachable by a further set of steps.

"I came to Arrakis looking for information on a Guild Steersman named Ardra."

"Hmmmmm. Ardra. And a Guild Steersman. Information on any Guild Steersman is valuable and dangerous."

"Indeed," I conceded.

The woman looked up in the sky. "You will notice that there are no satellites above this sky. We like it that way."

I pressed the matter. "Ardra is a person of interest in the matter of some stolen antiquities so my people have sent me out to gain answers."

"The information you seek is..." She looked to the sky again. "I am sorry. But I can not help you."

"I see." I was disappointed and let it show.

"I must go now," she said.

"Thank you for your help and your water."

"May your way be clear and may Shai Halud smile upon you."

She was invoking the blessing of a local diety no doubt. I thanked her, then added, "May I share water with you before you go?"

I offered her one of my canteens which she accepted with grace.

"Thank you for your gift," she replied.

"You are most welcome. I hope our paths cross again

"I think they will." And with that she departed as quietly as she had appeared.

I returned to the desert.

It was another hour before I found a deposit of spice and began my first harvest. The air was full of the scent of cinnamon. Breathing the raw spice in as I sifted the sand was an experience very difficult to describe. There was a slight sense of euphoria mixed with a hint of dread. There was a sense of being able to see the horizon clearly for the first time. It was not unpleasant, neither was it exactly comfortable. I'm sure the experience would vary from person to person, but I had to wonder what it was like for someone like Ardra.

I gathered enough for three small pouches. I decided that was enough for my first day and returned to the settlement.