[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
adopt the appearance of severe damage. Do not, repeat, do not
conduct self-repairs in that area. Do you understand?
I understand, the ship said politely. Simulation program prepared.
A few moments later, the soft thud of a weapons hit was
immediately followed by a massive concussion and a rapid drop in
cabin pressure. Wolruf, more sensitive to air pressure changes than
the others, let out a sharp, painful yelp and fell to the floor.
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
Derec dashed to her side, but she waved him off. S okay. Shaking
her head, she got back to her hind feet. More surprised an urt.
Section 17D has been explosively decompressed, the ship
announced courteously. Cabin pressure now stabilized. After a
short pause, the ship politely added, Hostile fire has ceased. The
boarding party is moving forward.
Forty-five secon s t jump, Wolruf whispered.
Contact imminent, the ship said. Shall I prepare a welcoming
message?
No! Avery hissed. And, frost it, keep your voice down!
Yes, master, the ship whispered sweetly. Hyperdrive power
restored. Hyperdrive control circuits still out.
Avery turned to Wolruf. How big is our jump window?
Five seconds, seven max She shuddered as a deep clang echoed
through the hull. The sound was followed by the groan of creaking
metal and an erratic series of hollow pokking sounds.
Induction limpet, Wolrufexplained in a frightened whine.
Magnetic boots. They ll walk roun th hull, try t figurr out where th
live uns are. Hard t sell dead slaves. She checked the clock again
and tucked her tail between her legs. Thirty seconds t jump.
The sounds changed now to the rhythmic clacking of metal boots and
the grating screech of something heavy being dragged across the
outer surface of the hull. This was followed by the deep whump! and
rising whine of a power pile being engaged.
Cut tin laser, Wolrufwhispered. Must ave found us. She looked
at the clock. Fifteen seconds t jump.
Ship? Repair status.
Hyperdrive control still out. Master? I am experiencing new hull
damage in Section 17A.
Sev n... six...
Thicken the hull in that section. Keep them out.
Four& t ree&
Negative effect, master. Stand by for hull breach.
Un... zero... at s it. Wolruf shrugged and stepped back from the
control panel, her ears sagging forlornly.
Hull breached in 17A. Hyperdrive control circuits restored.
What? Avery and Wolruf froze for a moment, staring at each other.
Then both leapt on the jump control handle and slammed it down.
A moment later, the Wild Goose Chase was somewhere else.
Avery wrestled himself out from under Wolruf and grabbed the
intercom grid. Ship! Can you contain the boarding party?
What boarding party? the ship asked innocently.
Wha ? Avery turned to Derec, a wild and confused look on his face.
Derec? See if you can use your commlink to get an exterior view.
Before he d finished speaking, Derec had closed his eyes, invoked the
commlink, and patched into the ship s optic feeds.
Nothing, he said hoarsely. Starfield. No other ships. I see the hull.
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
He gasped. Ouch! We took some serious damage.
But where are the boarders? Avery demanded. Check Section 17.
I m getting there. Section 15. Section 16; I see the limpet, it s welded
onto the hull. Section 17. Derec s eyes opened wide in surprise.
They re gone!
Gone? Where?
Wolruf roused herself from the corner Avery had pushed her into. If
they ur lucky, she said in a tired rasp, they got fried by the en rgy
pulse from th jump.
That s lucky?
Wolruf indulged in a good shake and then shambled over to join
Avery and Derec. Don t u know nothin about yperspace? Magn tic
polar ties reverse. If u live t rough th insertion, ur boot magnets
repel th ship s magn tic field. Only for a picosecon , but at s long
enough t blow u off like a rocket.
Derec s face paled. You mean, they could still be alive, but floating in
hyperspace?
Wolruf laid a paw on Derec s shoulder and sagged against him.
Derec, if they made it int yperspace, they could still be alive for
centuries.
Derec was still considering that idea when Wolruf took a deep breath
and stood up straight. What s done iss done. What we need t do now
is figure out where we are. She pushed off Derec, staggered over to
the control console, and started punching buttons. As if in response,
the normal cabin lighting returned, and the air recirculation fans
kicked in with a buzz.
Internal environment restored, the ship announced pleasantly.
Thank you for your patience.
Blinking as his eyes adjusted to the light, Derec put his hand on
Wolruf s shoulder and tried to turn her around. She shrugged it off.
What do you mean, figure out where we are? he asked. We jumped
right on schedule.
We jumped four seconds late, she said without looking up, an
with th wrong calc lations. We ad the extra mass of th boardin
party, an we lost ship s mass in the fight. She paused to punch a few
more buttons and study the readouts. No tellin ow far off th jump
was skewed.
Avery gently took Derec by the elbow and pulled him out of Wolruf s
way. Anything we can do to help?
Yeah. She tweaked a control and brought the main viewscreen back
to life. Fix Mandelbrot an get im down ere. I need im.
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]