Ice Planet Barbarians

Georgie uses fire to melt the ice covering the ship’s control panels, curious whether this discovery is good news for the women or poses a risk. She presses a strangely labelled button, despite knowing this to be foolish; she can’t think of another way to determine the functionality of the ship. She realizes that she would rather stay with Vektal than risk the uncertainty of a potential voyage home but recognizes that she can’t make the same decision for the other women.

The ship turns on, speaking in a language that Georgie doesn’t understand and blinking lights. Vektal, alarmed, seeks to defend Georgie and doesn’t understand what is happening. The computer, hearing her speak, adapts to English and explains that Vektal is a “modified sakh,” who are “modified” (via their khui) to survive on Not-Hoth. The sakh crash-landed on the planet approximately 300 years earlier. The computer explains that all living beings on the planet must have a khui, or else they will die from a toxic gas that humans and sakhs cannot process. The sakhs who did not receive a khui died within eight days. The khui adapts to its host, leading to improved healing and cold tolerance.