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“Seventy-four. Just a little younger than my brother.”

“Oh. Well, he has quite the lifespan compared to me. That is about how many years I have left. If we do end up together, you won’t have to deal with me for long.” It seemed strange to comfort Yvari, but she got the impulse to ease the woman’s fear of the future. “He can find someone else soon enough, by your standards.”

Mathon murmured, “Not as soon as you would think if you became a consort.”

“Lady Yvari simply stated companion. That is a revocable position.”

Mathon paused. “Yes, it is. How do you know that?”

“Hmrain studies at the Education Station. We waited for a bulk transport to take us, so we had more time than others to study.”

“Why were you kept together?” Mathon frowned.

“We have similar genetics. Our grouping will blend easily into other species and create a predictable set of hybrids. We are a population boost for sparsely inhabited areas.”

Mathon looked around. “Like this continent.”

“Correct. I am guessing the overseer was suggested to get a batch of us for an expansion boost. Unfortunately, they didn’t add any incentive to mixing with local populations, so most of my people are socializing with their own people. We were even put in one neighbourhood. That sort of thing breeds insular behaviour.”

She shrugged. “Few of us have moved outside it.”

Mathon frowned. “How many is few?”

“Twenty or so. Five of them have taken pigment alterations. Most have taken upland or lowland characteristics. I am the only deep-sea adaptation that I am aware of. The lab was very excited.”

Mathon frowned. “Why?”

She touched his arm and turned him around to face the bay. “I am far more likely to fall in the water than run up a hill.”

He chuckled. “Fair enough. I can see the logic. Now, how can I get a few more boxes of food to take home?”

“Nice distraction.” She chuckled and headed back to the stall.

“Thank you. You have met my wife and son. It is important to know when a topic has run its course.”

“I have noticed that Hazor is rather nosey.”

He smiled and followed her back to the stall.

“How many?”

“Two more each? And one of akko? I never knew it could taste like that.”

“I spent my first year here taste-testing things and getting others to do the same. Bribery was occasionally involved.”

He smiled, and she got into the stall, interrupting Sunny as she mixed and grilled the four orders and the full box of akko.

She grinned and moved quickly. The joy of having the meat and vegetables thin was that they cooked quickly and still tasted good. She squirted on the sauce and tossed it again right before serving.

Sunny took up the akko station, and he looked at the order, grinned, and filled the box. He got the orders ready and was about to leave when she put a hand on his arm and got some string out, turning the sliding boxes into a parcel.

Sunny got payment, and Cloudy walked outside with the boxes tied with string.

She handed the orders over to Mathon. “Here you go. They will stay warm for one hundred and twenty minutes, at least, and the akko is in a separate section, so it will remain cool.”

He nodded. “Thank you. The food is really good.”

“Thank you. It took a lot of trial and error, but we got there.”