Free Fluency by Jennifer Foehner Wells

divulge more.”
    Jane blurted out, “Didn’t anyone else experience anything out of the ordinary? A buzzing sound inside their head?”
    Ajaya was quizzical. “Buzzing? You spoke of bees yesterday. Why didn’t you say anything?”
    Jane considered what to say. “At first I thought it was just nerves. But, it got stronger, building over time. When I deciphered the symbols, it suddenly became unbearable.”
    Ajaya looked thoughtful. “And that is when you passed out. Have you experienced tinnitus before?”
    “Tinnitus? No.”
    Ajaya retrieved her otoscope, examined Jane’s ears at length, then pulled back. “It could be Meniere’s. That’s a disturbance in the inner ear. It can have sudden onset and lead to severe vertigo. Headaches are common with it, as well. It’s very treatable. Do you hear the buzzing now? Are you feeling dizzy or perceiving any hearing loss?”
    “No. I feel fine.”
    “It can be very intermittent. A year may pass between episodes or they can happen every day. Do you feel any pressure in either ear—now or yesterday?”
    “None.”
    “I wish I could perform an audiometric exam on you, but I don’t have the equipment. Stress is known to make tinnitus worse, though it doesn’t cause it.” She seemed vexed and stowed away the equipment as she continued, “Your passing out in that moment may have been simple orthostatic hypotension. More than 80 percent of long-flight astronauts experience it. I don’t know, Jane. It doesn’t fit well with one diagnosis and that makes me uneasy. Let’s cautiously watch this. You will tell me if you have any of these or any new symptoms, won’t you?”
    Jane’s vision blurred. “Of course. Of course I will.” Perhaps Ajaya could understand if she told her the rest. She swallowed and blinked, then finally said, “I’m sorry. I’ll be more forthcoming in the future, I promise.”
    Jane scooped cold scrambled eggs out of a pouch, but didn’t taste them. She was itching to get back into that ship. She didn’t want to stay cooped up in the capsule for another twenty-four hours, where she couldn’t see anything firsthand.
    She resumed scrutinizing the symbols, concentrating on the images taken from the exterior of the storage crates with the gran ular contents. The cipher was elusive. She could almost see a hologram, but it was hovering just out of reach. It didn’t help that her mind kept wandering, going back to all the things the voice had said to her the day before.
    “There is plentiful foodstuff, as you have already discovered.”
    She blinked, stifling a startled gasp as the hologram sprang to life.
    Nourishment, sustenance …palatable, appetizing…satiety…healthful, wholesome…aggregate, composite, blend.
    She wrinkled her nose. The crates were filled with some kind of nutritive food-base, a raw material used to manufacture food. The concept that formed in her mind was completely foreign. She was puzzling over that as she cleaned up the debris from breakfast, when the radio squawked. “Providence. Gibbs. Over.”
    Ajaya picked up her two-way. “This is Providence. Over.”
    “Just checking in. Did you get the pictures? Over.”
    Jane picked up her own radio. “Yes, Ron. I’ve got eight new images. I need a little more context to be able to decipher them. I’d like to join you. Dr. Varma has determined there’s nothing seriously wrong with me. Over.”
    Gibbs’ cheerful drawl came back, “Copy that, Jane. We’ll get back to you. Over.”
    Moments later, the radio came back to life. “Providence, this is Walsh. We’re splitting into two teams. Gibbs and Compton are going back to get some extra shots for context and Bergen and I are going forward. Walsh out.”
    “I could meet you—”
    “Stay put, Holloway. Walsh out.”
    Jane ground her teeth. Hiding in the capsule couldn’t protect her from what happened the day before, she was certain of that. Of course, they didn’t know that.
    While she waited, she prepared a pack