Her current excavation was a trench outside the eastern wall, where she rigorously recorded the three-dimensional position of everything she found. So far nothing was unusual, all finds similar to those on other planets. She thought at one point she discovered signs of ancient plant-life which might suggest conditions when the ruins were established, but deep searching in paleobotanical resources showed that the pollen could not be ancient. Still, she dug, surveyed, ran augers and corers inside the trench and under the walls.
Ranglen helped but little conversation passed between them. He wasn’t good with a trowel or hoe (his wounded arm didn’t help), and too often he seemed preoccupied. He’d ask if he could wander off into the highlands. He always gave a specific direction, though he usua
