by S. H. Jucha
The remark sounded facetious, but Laestra was serious. She was also the only Méridien on the crew and had often been teased about needing to eat more to bulk up.
Jackie regarded Kara, who nodded toward Laestra, and Jackie handed off the nanites paste and the tubing.
Laestra stuck the end of the nanites paste nozzle into the tube and pressed gently on the applicator, while she sucked on the tubing. Within a second, she had two centimeters worth of paste in the tubing.
Kara’s eyes cut toward Jackie, whose eyes had widened at how quickly the paste had filled the tube.
Laestra approached the hole, and Jackie sent,
Laestra did as instructed. She worked as quickly as the nanites allowed.
Kara had marked the tube to the depth of the hatch as per the engineering specifications held by the controller. Every crew member watched that dark line on the clear tube creep closer and closer to the face of the hatch.
With less than a centimeter to go, Jackie sent,
The twins watched their suits’ air dwindle. They’d remained linked and could read each other’s air reserves.
Pauline sent.
Abruptly a small piece of hardened metal shot from the hatch and glanced off Pauline’s helmet. Then their suits’ audio pickups heard a shrill whistle as air poured through a hole in the hatch.
The twins kept their heads down until the whistling stopped. Then they heard the clang of the hatch lever being thrown, and Pauline got her look at Jackie’s worried face.
Pauline felt the first mate hold on to her for a little longer than was necessary. Then Jackie released her and went after Paulette.
The crew hugged the twins. Just before the pair opened their faceplates, they heard the warning ping from Pauline’s suit of dangerously low air reserves.
“That was close,” Laestra murmured.
Before conversation could continue, Paulette said excitedly, “Captain, I think we have an answer to our problem.”
“I’m all ears,” Kara replied.
“Jackie thought engine one’s shutdown might have been a failure in signal transfer, and she was right,” Paulette explained. “The circuitry embedded in the transfer cable is shot.”
“Do we have a replacement cable in stock?” Kara asked.
“Negative, Captain,” Jackie replied. “I don’t think our crew was ever supposed to go through these tubes. The replacement would have been undertaken at an orbital station or by a repair ship.”
It hit Kara how dangerous it had been to purchase an intrasystem freighter that had undergone conversion. There was no substitute for a ship designed to sail among the stars.
“We don’t need stock, Captain,” Pauline interjected. “Engine three is hot. We can’t go there.”
“But engine two and four are available to us,” Paulette finished.
“Captain, if we take the cable from engine two, we’d balance propulsion with engines one and four,” Jackie offered.
“The twins would have to crawl through engine two’s tube and recover the transfer cable,” Kara said, voicing her thoughts aloud. “The hatch hole in number one would need to be repaired, and we have to fix the tube’s air pressure panel. Finally, the signal cable has to be replaced, and it has to prove to have solved the problem.” She regarded Jackie to see if she had enumerated all the issues.
“Then we have to program the controller to start only engines one and four,” Jackie said, adding the final step.
Kara stared quietly at the twins, weighing the intricacies and danger of the possible solution against the dilemma they faced. The dilemma won. “Get it done,” she said to Jackie.
Immediately, Jackie directed the crew, assigning tasks.
The twins checked the air pressure panel. The crew members who had opened the first hatch attacked the retaining bolts on the tube that led to engine two.
Laestra and the remaining crew members hurried through the galley way toward the bow module. Laestra went to the stockroom to get a tube of nanites repair, while the others picked up spare air tanks for Jackie and the twins.
Hatch two was as resistant to opening as hatch one. The team pulling out the bolts didn’t even attempt to take on the lever. As the final bolt was removed, they stepped back and regarded Jackie. In turn, the first mate repeated her earlier successful maneuver of wedging herself against the bulkhead for more leverage. With a loud, ear-piercing shriek, the lever gave way.
The twins reported the air pressure panel restored, noting that several internal connections had deteriorated due to moisture condensation.
“Check the panel in tube two,” Jackie directed the twins.
They found the same issue with that panel. This time, they ensured they had the tools necessary to repair the panel at the far end of tube two, if necessary.
Laestra returned and started filling the hole in hatch one with nanites paste.
Then crew members arrived with spare tanks and swapped out Jackie’s first. When the twins were available, they repeated the operation.
The twins double-checked their tool packs. When they were satisfied, they nodded at Jackie and crawled into tube two.
Much to the twins’ relief, events proceeded without problems. The far panel operated the air pressure exchange system, and the hatch opened without issue. Each twin took on one end of the signal cable, releasing it from its connector.
Pauline sent.
Pauline regarded Paulette and reached out to briefly pat her shoulder. Then Paulette wound up the long, heavy cable and slung it around her chest and over one shoulder. Pauline crawled into the tube first, and Paulette followed her.
The repaired panel at the end of tube two responded and pressurized the tube. Pauline levered the hatch open, and she spied a group of relieved faces.
Jackie pulled Pauline from the tube.
Jackie grinned at Paulette, as she set her on the deck.
The twins opened their faceplates to shut down air flow. This allowed crew members to give them fresh tanks. When the tanks were swapped, they regarded Laestra, who replied, “The hole is sealed and solid. The hatch is ready.”
Once again, the twins climbed into tube one. Behind them, the hatch was closed and locked. Then they crawled through the meters of narrow metal alloy casing to reach the far end. The panel responded and the air was evacuated.
Clumsily, Paulette exited the tube headfirst, using her hands to slow the descent to the decking, while Pauline held her feet. Then Paulette helped her twin out of the tube.
They tapped fists, splayed fingers, and briefly interlocked hands. It was twin-speak, wishing each other good fortune.
Pauline removed the tail end of the original signal cable, while Paulette laid out the replacement cable. Then they attached engine two’s cable to engine one.
Within a quarter hour, the twins were back in the control room, and Paulette was busy at engine one’s control panel. “Diagnostics are running,” she announced with visi
ble relief.
The crew waited anxiously for the final word.
“According to the readouts, engine one is ready to fire,” Paulette said and gratefully slumped with her forearms on the control station.
“Paulette and Pauline, back to the bow module,” Jackie ordered. “Get some food and some rest. The rest of you restore the safety bolts and clean up this space. Then eat and sleep.”
Sets of empty tanks lay around the control room. Jackie picked up eight tanks by the pairs’ yokes and headed after the crew members.
Laestra chuckled at the receding image of the first mate carrying the equivalent of four loads of spare tanks. “No matter how much I eat, I don’t think I’ll ever bulk up enough,” she commented, and the New Terran crew laughed at the thought of their lone Méridien achieving Jackie’s stature and strength.
“Crew status?” asked Kara, when Jackie made the bridge.
“Eating and then sleeping,” Jackie replied.
“Well, the next step is yours, Jackie. You have the most experience with the controller.”
“This will be a new one,” Jackie commented quietly.
Kara observed her first mate lean tiredly over her controller panel. “Not now, Jackie,” she said. “Food and rest go for you too.”
Jackie started to object, but her captain’s gaze was firm. “Later, Captain,” she said rising and heading for the freighter’s tiny galley.
The food dispenser was kept busy as the New Terran women each made several trips to get multiple plates. Laestra often assisted with delivering pitchers of hot thé and water for the two tables.
“Does the controller allow independent firing of each engine?” Paulette asked Jackie after she finished her first plate.
“It should,” Jackie replied. “I’ve never investigated its programming to that degree. Never had to go that far.”
“If it doesn’t, can you augment the code?” Pauline asked.
The crew stopped eating and stared at Jackie expectantly.
“I’ll guess we’ll find out,” Jackie replied, barely pausing between bites.
Six hours later, the crew was on duty, Jackie was on the bridge, and Kara was asleep.
Jackie heard the crew step through the hatch to enter the bridge. Then Pauline and Paulette took seats on either side of her.
“Thought we might help,” Paulette offered.
“The more, the merrier,” Jackie replied. She leaned back and pointed at the panel that directly accessed the controller. “The only submenu items under engine control are ignition, shut down, and output.”
“So, the controller wants to operate all four engines in a coordinated action,” Pauline surmised.
“That’s what it looks like,” Jackie said. “Without changing the default parameters, the controller will detect engines two and three offline, and won’t fire the other two.”
“Who knew the smallest crew member would have the necessary skills to solve our final hurdle?” Laestra asked from the bridge hatch.
The New Terran women turned to stare at the slender Méridien.
“You haven’t appreciated the sophistication of this device,” Laestra explained. “You don’t need to manually reprogram it. Controller, access,” she called out.
“Responding,” the controller replied, its sound emanating from the bridge speakers.
“Programming of engine firing sequence,” Laestra requested.
“Approval required,” the controller replied, and, with a hand, Laestra urged Jackie to reply.
“First Mate Jackie Olmand approves,” Jackie said self-consciously.
“Approval granted. State request,” the controller said.
“Engines two and three are to be kept offline until further notice,” Jackie stated. “All engine operations are to be confined to engines one and four.”
“Understood,” the controller replied. “State status of engines two and three for the log.”
“Signal cable from engine two to control panel needs repair or replacement,” Pauline replied.
“Engine three has failed completely and requires overhaul,” Paulette added.
“Engine statuses noted,” the controller responded. “Any other requests?”
“Negative,” Laestra replied. “Requests are complete.”
“Understood,” the controller replied and dropped off the bridge audio.
Jackie stared admiringly at Laestra, who stood in the middle of the bridge. She rose, spread her arms wide, and declared, “You beautiful woman. I could hug you.”
“No, you’d break me,” Laestra replied, laughing. It was another tease she suffered from the New Terran women.
Jackie menacingly stepped slowly toward Laestra, as if she wasn’t taking no for an answer.
Laestra kept laughing, but she backed toward the bridge hatch. When Jackie accelerated her advance, Laestra bolted from the bridge, intent on putting some distance between her and the first mate.
Jackie didn’t give chase. Instead, she turned and stared at the twins. “If and when we get a new freighter, we need to go to school. First on the subject list will be our new controller. It should become our new friend.”
The engineers nodded. Their training on the ship had been nonexistent. They depended on their experience with intrasystem haulers. The Omnian controller was a sophisticated ship’s computer, and their error was to employ the same techniques that they’d used on the intrasystem ships.
9: Fire the Engines
“What success?” Kara asked, after she’d gotten some rest.
“It was a snap,” Jackie replied, leaning back expansively in her bridge seat.
Kara’s eyed widened and then narrowed in suspicion.
“The controller is Omnian built and is based on Méridien technology,” Jackie explained. “So, if you want something unusual from the controller, you just talk to it and make your request.”
Kara attempted to process what her first mate was telling her. It was orders above what she thought Jackie was capable of doing with a controller.
Jackie grinned and added, “At least, that’s what Laestra did.”
“Ah,” Kara said, finally understanding. “Good lesson.”
“That’s what I told our engineers,” Jackie replied. “We’ve got our work cut out for us when we get a new freighter.”
“When that happens, I’ll speak to Admiral Cordelia. We’ll need more crew, and we’ll need a SADE to teach us what we don’t know.”
“Isn’t that the truth?” Jackie commented.
“I take it we’re ready to fire the engines?” Kara asked.
“That’s what the controller said,” Jackie replied, giving Kara a big grin. “After firing, we’ll be able to let the attitude tanks fill. What tangent do we want to take to intersect the original vector?”
“I’ve been thinking about that. I’m wondering what Captain de Long has been doing,” Kara replied.
“Don’t forget, Captain de Long has a SADE aboard,” Jackie reminded.
“That’s right. Hermione,” Kara replied. “There goes my ability to anticipate.”
“Actually, I think it makes it easier,” Jackie said. “We do the simplest thing possible, and let the Trident find us. Hermione will be running an exhaustive search strategy.”
“And what’s the simplest thing to do?” Kara asked, an eyebrow rising.
“I wish I knew,” Jackie replied, “but I’ve some ideas. We need to get back on the original vector as soon as possible. They’ll be searching along it first. When they don’t find us, they’ll assume our engines misdirected us.”
“Which they did,” Kara supplied.
“True, but the point is that then they’ll expand the search pattern, but they won’t have any idea how far we were thrown off course.”
Kara mused on the shared points. “So, I see three choices,” she said. “We can return to our original vector and come to a stationary position. Number two, we resume the original vector and sail on. Third choice is to trans
it to Pyre from here,” Kara proposed.
“I’m in favor of choice number two,” Jackie said. “We can transit at any time. I don’t like the idea of the Trident crew searching for us, for who knows how long, while we sail into Pyrean space.”
“I’m inclined to agree. We’ll give our escort a week to find us. Then we’ll transit,” Kara decided.
“Works for me,” Jackie said. “Besides, our emergency beacon is still transmitting. If the Trident is in the area, the ship should be picking up on our signal within that time frame.”
“Let’s make it happen, Jackie,” Kara directed.
Jackie grinned and folded her arms. Then she said confidently, “Controller, access.”
“Responding,” the controller answered.
Kara glanced at the bridge speakers from where the sound emanated. She was aware that a controller could respond orally, but that feature hadn’t been used by her or the crew. Originally, the controller had been programmed to transit between Omnia and New Terra. After Kara purchased the ship, it was a matter of selecting the destination icons on the navigation panel. Later, they sailed with the fleet, and the SADEs linked the controllers for them.
“Navigation request,” Jackie said.
“Ready,” the controller replied.
“Transit to the nearest point of the original vector,” Jackie said. “Then resume course at sublight velocity.”
“Understood. State date and time of operation,” the controller said.
Jackie glanced at Kara, who extended a hand toward the bridge, as if to say go ahead.
“Execute immediately,” Jackie replied.
“Firing engines one and four,” the controller stated.
The freighter’s powerful engines came online, and the subtle vibrations were felt throughout the ship. Kara clamped her hands on Jackie’s solid shoulders and squeezed them in triumph.
“Attitude tanks require pressure,” the controller said. “Course correcting with engines.”
Jackie and Kara watched a panel’s readouts, as the controller used variable engine output to reorient the ship.
“New course acquired. Transiting,” the controller stated, and the entire crew felt the shift.