Omnia (The Silver Ships Book 9)
Page 22
“You’re welcome,” Jodlyne replied, snuggling closer. “You’re always welcome.”
Edmas bent to kiss the top of Jodlyne’s head.
“Mickey told me to check with Captain Cordelia on the details of the Assembly’s agreement,” Jodlyne continued.
“I don’t understand,” Edmas replied. “Why would you be asking about the deal? What does it have to do with us?”
“I can see it will be up to me to manage the credits in this partnership, while you focus on the engineering,” Jodlyne replied, giggling and smacking Edmas on the chest. “I’ve learned that you and I own a small portion of Omnia Ships.”
“What?” Edmas exclaimed, sitting upright and launching Jodlyne off him.
“It’s true,” Jodlyne replied, sitting on her knees. “When Alex laid out the owners of Omnia Ships, he wrote us in for shares of the company.”
“What portion of the company are we talking about?”
“Now, he wants to know about the credits,” Jodlyne teased. “Well, I got lost in the details of the timelines, income, and expenses parts of the arrangement, as Cordelia explained them to me. Suffice it to say, you and I will be earning millions of credits.”
“Wow, a million credits! Over what period of time?”
Jodlyne giggled again and kissed Edmas on the cheek. She leaned over to whisper in his ear, enjoying the feel of her breasts pressing against his chest. “Not one million credits, my engineering wonder, millions … millions every year, once Haraken delivers completed travelers to customers.”
-19-
The Tour
Alex caught a shuttle ride from the Freedom to its twin city-ship, the Our People. Thankfully, the Exchange had furnished the aging city-ship with four travelers, on loan, of course. After the clean, bright, bustling atmosphere of the refurbished Freedom, the Our People appeared dull, dusty, and much too quiet.
The Haraken workers, who had arrived aboard the Our People, transferred to the Freedom and were handed over to Renée and Ophelia. The two women took over the organizational processes of the workers — assigning cabins, organizing the shift schedules, arranging transport between the city-ships, and ensuring their credentials were entered into the Freedom’s controller so that Cordelia could assign their jobs.
Once aboard the Our People, Alex commed the controller for Hector’s position, and the SADE promptly responded.
When Alex exited the lift onto the corridor, which surrounded the periphery of the expansive garden, central to the giant ship, Hector hurried over to him. The SADE’s clothes were covered in soil, bits of vegetation, and his pants were soaked to the knees. Alex hid his smile when he saw Hector had stuck flowers over his ears. He resembled the image of a fey, which Renée had described to him after watching some of her favorite vids.
“You’re putting a great deal of effort into the garden, I see,” Alex commented.
“It suffered from poor maintenance, Ser, and, as it’s important to the health of humans, I sought to ensure the workers had a comfortable place to enjoy midday meal, an evening’s stroll, or relax.”
“You’ve done a wonderful job, Hector,” Alex said, gazing around at the ground’s neatness. Many plants were already showing new growth and buds from the SADE’s tender attentions, and streams were clear, displaying myriad species of fish.
“I quite enjoy watching the flora and fauna thrive,” Hector admitted. “It’s a dramatic change from my previous existence.”
“Especially when you were fearful every tick of time for your very existence with Mahima Ganesh as your mistress,” Alex added.
“The woman’s mental decline was terrifying,” Hector admitted. He pulled a flower from behind his ear and sniffed at its delicate fragrance.
“I’m so sorry, Hector, that the former Council Leader chose to make you pay for her hatred of me.”
“If it took years of suffering to be rewarded with my freedom, then it was well worth it.”
“And you seem to be enjoying your independence immensely,” Alex replied, gazing pointedly at the SADE’s wet, dirty clothing.
“My apologies, Ser, your presence was unexpected. I can change my attire, if you wish, and then we can take an inspection tour of your ship.”
“You’re fine,” Alex said, smiling. “I like to see an individual enjoying his work. We can take the tour later. Right now, I wish to speak with you.” Alex started walking along a path that led through the magnificent garden, and Hector walked dutifully beside him.
“Hector, I know you’re here to enjoy Trixie’s company. Have you been in touch with her?” Alex asked.
“Incessantly, Ser.”
“Is Trixie listening now?” Alex asked, realizing the close connection the two SADEs must have, if Hector would use the word incessantly.
“If I can help, Ser, I would be pleased to do so. I’m grateful for your efforts, which resulted in my release and that of every other Confederation SADE.”
“I wasn’t prepared to be the owner of another city-ship, and the agreement negotiated by the Exchange SADEs cleverly accelerates our traveler production schedule, but the entire process is fraught with challenges.”
“I’m familiar with the disparate conditions you face, Ser … this ship’s poor condition, buildout of the bays, coordinating the traveler layups against a defined delivery schedule, managing the supply flow of materials for the travelers’ construction, and overseeing the ship’s refit.”
“Precisely, Hector. My thought is that a human would be overwhelmed by the efforts to deliver on so many fronts, at the same time.”
“I can see where that would be a distinct possibility, Ser.”
Alex turned to admire a flowering plant to hide his smile. Hector wasn’t picking up on the conversation’s thread. Fortunately, Trixie was.
Hector’s head snapped up, and he focused on Alex, who had turned from enjoying the blooms and held a hand at his chin, his fingers extending over his lips. The prior conversation with Alex rolled through Hector’s kernel in a flash, and he examined it from a new perspective.
Alex recognized a SADE’s mannerisms when inhabiting his first avatar and seeking to reevaluate recent communication. He removed his hand from in front of his mouth and revealed a grin.
“Apparently, I’ve not been exhibiting the more astute aspects of a SADE, Ser,” Hector admitted. “I do believe that I could do an excellent job of coordinating the diverse tasks the job requires, and I would be pleased to assist any captain you appoint.”
Trixie held her virtual breath, hoping Dassata would give Hector the first mate’s position.
“Actually, Hector, I wasn’t looking for a captain’s assistant or a first mate. I was seeking a captain.”
Alex watched Hector freeze, his kernel fully occupied by his thought processes.
“Well, Hector?” asked Alex, when the SADE finally blinked.
“I would be honored to accept the position, Ser,
” Hector said humbly, and he pulled the other flower from behind his ear and handed it to Alex, who paused to inhale its pleasant scent.
“Welcome aboard, Captain Hector,” Alex said, extending his hand to the SADE. As the two shook hands, Trixie’s squeal of delight reached both of them, and they grinned.
“You have some key individuals to coordinate with, Captain. Captain Cordelia is experienced as a controlling SADE on these city-ships, and she led the Freedom’s refit; Mickey is your contact for the buildout and the traveler frames; Edmas is perfecting an idea for the spray technique; Ben will be supplying the finished materials; and Renée and Ophelia are coordinating the workers’ needs aboard the Freedom and their transport to and from this ship.”
“Understood, Ser. I will be in contact with them immediately.
“You have your work cut out for you, Captain. I advise you to tap into some of the Daelon Independents to assist with the rudimentary needs of this ship, especially the garden. For a long while, you’re going to be too busy to play in the dirt.” Alex gave Hector a slap on the shoulder and headed back for his traveler, which waited for him in an empty bay.
When Trixie closed the link, Hector took a sniff of his flower and gazed around the garden that he wouldn’t be digging in for a while. Then he headed for his cabin to cleanup and placed a comm to Renée to request some uniforms. If I’m going to be a captain, then I’d better appear as one, Hector thought.
On his way to the bay, Alex signaled Cordelia.
It didn’t surprise Alex that Trixie had quickly spread the announcement.
When Cordelia shared the news with Julien, her partner replied,
The Freedom’s crew stared at the strange hat that stuck out to the sides of Julien’s head like bird wings. Many dived into the Freedom’s library to search for the image. One enterprising Independent sent her visual of the hat and an audio clip of the whistle to the ship’s controller, requesting matches. She shared her answer with those engaged in the search, sending,
* * *
Mickey invited Alex to visit his lab aboard the Freedom, and the engineer was nearly dancing in place when Alex came through the airlock into the bay.
I don’t think I can take any more wondrous gifts, Alex thought.
Mickey must have anticipated Alex’s concern, because he immediately said, “Just so you know, Alex. This idea isn’t for you.”
“Good to hear, Mickey,” Alex replied with relief. “Okay, what do you have?”
“Well, it was a request from the SADEs after Willem spent so much time in confinement. The Confederation SADEs experienced the same challenge, while they watched over the nests, during the time you were gone. The energy drain on their power cells was extensive. So, the SADEs wanted a means of minimizing their exposure. Edmas, if you will?”
Edmas stood beside a lab table and drew off a cover from a lean teardrop shell about 36 centimeters in height.
Alex stepped closer to examine the device and was about to comment on the model when he saw two fine power leads coming from the blunt end of the teardrop. He adopted a huge grin and said, “You’re about to tell me, Mickey, that you’ve designed a charging unit for the SADEs’ power cells based on a miniature grav shell that can be embedded in an avatar.”
Mickey, Edmas, and Jodlyne broke into applause at Alex’s guess.
“Precisely,” Mickey replied, beaming.
Alex grabbed Mickey in a hug, whispering, “It’s a wonderful gift for our crystal friends, Mickey,” as he pounded the engineer on the back. He released Mickey and swept Edmas into his arms, reducing the strength of the embrace for the Sol native, but the hug still elicited an “oomph” from the young man.
“I want mine,” Jodlyne protested, when Alex turned to her and hesitated. He had seemed ready to clasp her shoulders rather than hug her, and she had thought, No you don’t. Instead, Jodlyne leapt and threw her arms around Alex’s neck. She felt Alex’s arms wrap around and hold her off the deck. “That’s better,” she said, giggling.
When Alex sat Jodlyne down, he regarded the threesome, who appeared to be bursting with pride and anticipating his questions. “Why do I detect there’s betting afoot?”
“Not fair,” Jodlyne cried. “You have to ask the questions.”
“Okay,” Alex replied, grinning. “I imagine the charging capability will depend on the nearness and strength of the particular gravity well. In addition, the drain on the power cells depends on the SADEs activities. That said, if the SADE is on a planet like Omnia, doing routine work, how long can the shell extend their power cell?”
“I win that one,” Edmas said, raising his hand and grinning, which caused Jodlyne to smack his arm. “The SADEs have created an extensive graph examining the factors of grav field, energy drain, and power extension,” the youthful engineer explained.
Alex received a stream of data, and one of his implant apps turned it into a three-dimensional graph, which he took a moment to study. “Impressive,” he finally declared. “This means if the SADEs restricted their motions on a normal-sized planet, or even a good-sized moon, they would never run out of charge. Well done! When can production begin?”
“I got one,” Jodlyne crowed. “We’ve been building them, as fast as we can, and we have enough units to supply nearly three-quarters of the SADEs. We should be finished with production within another week.”
“You would be surprised who’s volunteered to perform the installation procedures,” Mickey said, daring Alex to venture a guess.
“Miranda,” Alex replied.
“That’s two for me,” Jodlyne yelled, clapping her hands.
“I’m already familiar with Miranda’s surgical skills,” Alex said, touching the side of his head. His hair had grown and the medical nanites had repaired all tissue damage. Unfortunately, the terrifying moments when he saw the Dischnya rebel queen and wasat pull and fire their weapons stayed with him. “But your design does give me another idea, Mickey. If this small one doesn’t have the output necessary to handle a heavy drain on a SADE’s power supply, we can always go with an external unit.”
“Does that qualify as a question?” Mickey pleaded with Edmas and Jodlyne. When his two associates agreed that it
did, Mickey said to Alex, “I’d never live this down, if I failed to anticipate one of your questions. I must be losing my touch.” Mickey stepped to a second lab table and pulled off a cover. A 76-centimeter-long teardrop shell, cradled in a harness with its leads extending from the blunt end, lay on the table.
“Plugs right in to the port on the back of the SADEs’ necks,” Mickey said proudly. “We haven’t produced any of these yet, but the process will start soon, and the first units will be incorporated into the EVA suits for the SADEs working on constructing the orbital terminal.
“You’ve outdone yourselves,” Alex said, grinning at the team. “I imagine Julien, Cordelia, Z, Miranda, and Rosette placed themselves at the bottom of the list to receive the small teardrops. When do you anticipate they’ll get their chargers?”
“Funny thing about that, Alex,” Mickey replied. “Cordelia published the order in which the SADEs would receive the units, prioritizing the SADEs expending the most energy and working in areas preventing easy charging, such as on the orbital station. Then the Confederation SADEs reordered the list, moving the Haraken SADEs from the bottom to the top and refused further communications on the issue.”
“Claude took care of Cordelia and Rosette,” Jodlyne said quietly, gently touching Alex’s arm, as he seemed to be unable to reply to Mickey’s announcement. “Now that the others have returned from Omnia, Claude has installed Z and Miranda’s. Julien’s receiving his unit even as we speak.”
“Looks like the community you wanted to see develop is coming along quite nicely,” Mickey added, smiling at his friend.
“It does, doesn’t it?” Alex acknowledged.
“So, what are your future plans for improvements of these charging shells?” Alex asked.
“Oh, black space,” Mickey muttered, and Edmas groaned.
Alex looked across the faces and caught Jodlyne’s grin. “I have three,” she mouthed to him, holding up three fingers.
“I’ll be expecting the credit transfers soonest, thank you kindly,” Jodlyne announced, quite pleased with the proof of her acumen to anticipate Alex’s questions.