Tiffin elbowed Dewey in his ribs. He belted out a cross between a yelp and a grunt.
Jake stopped in his tracks, but didn't turn around. He drew a deep breath and exhaled it. Then he continued out of the room. Dewey and Tiffin followed.
Chapter 4
The three of them walked down the ship's central corridor and Jake explained the basic layout of the ship—cargo decks on the lower level, bridge in the front, medical bay in the middle, engines in the back and in the center of the ship at the farthest edges from the central corridor.
They passed the unoccupied crew quarters. The ship had sixteen rooms to hold captain and crew. Ten were private rooms. Tiffin and Dewey had been assigned one each. Jake had the largest, the captain's quarters. He pointed to the door of his room as they passed it.
"That one's mine," he said. "Off limits." He turned his head to look Tiffin in the eyes, then Dewey. "Got it?"
"Yes," Dewey said. "Of course."
"You got it, Captain," Tiffin said. She was grinning, again.
Jake shook his head. "Jake. Just call me Jake."
"Okay."
"Sarah can point you to some of the projects on the ship that need to be done," Jake said to Tiffin. "Just stay out of the second cargo bay, the engine room, and the ship's core-containment facility."
"Of course," Tiffin said.
"Oh," Jake said. "One more thing. Don't bother me if I'm in my room. If I'm going to have you two running around this ship, I need at least one place for peace and quiet."
"You'll hardly know I'm here," Tiffin said. "I'll be as quiet as a…" She paused and chuckled.
"As a mouse," Jake said. "You know what I told you about that thing."
"Squeakers stays in my room," Tiffin said.
"Right." Jake nodded. "Now, come on. I'll show you where I keep the tools. And Dewey."
"Yes," Dewey said.
"After that I'll show you around the bridge a little more."
"If you don't think I'll be in the way," Dewey said.
"Let's hope not," Jake said. "But your… ability may come in handy."
"How's that?" Dewey said.
"Most people think space is big and empty." Jake gestured with his hands in sweeping motions.
"Well, isn't it?" Tiffin asked.
"Sure," Jake said. "I suppose it is. But you'd be surprised how often you run into somebody or something in this big open space."
"You mean aliens?" Tiffin asked.
Jake stopped walking and turned his head back to look at Tiffin. "What does that even mean? Alien to who?"
"Yeah. I suppose you're right," Tiffin said.
Jake turned back to continue walking down the hall, with Dewey and Tiffin just behind him over either shoulder. "There's aliens. And then there's aliens. You, me, Dewey, we're in the first category. If we're lucky, we won't run into any of the second type… this week."
He glanced back at the two of them again and saw Tiffin and Dewey looking to each other. She was wide-eyed but seemed more intrigued than concerned. Dewey, on the other hand, looked to be running all sorts of unpleasant scenarios through his head. Jake grinned. He knew one of the best ways to instill order in a crew was to give them something to worry about and make sure they didn't quite know what to expect. A crew in that situation, he'd learned from years of experience, would listen to their captain, hoping he might give them some idea of what to expect or how to survive, if it came to that. It was a false sense of security. Jake knew that. He'd seen rookies latch on to commanding officers or squad leaders back in the day only to get picked off by the enemy. Sometimes the enemy had a weapon pointed at you, he thought. Other times the enemy was a poorly sealed airlock or a badly contained radioactive core. Space and most of the planets he'd seen over the years were anything but a children's playground.
Jake stopped in front of a door after they'd ran the course of a few halls including a downward slope.
"This is it," he said. He placed his hand on a panel beside the door. A red laser in the panel moved down, scanning his hand. The door opened with a soft whoosh. Overhead lights in the room turned on as Jake stepped through the threshold.
"Get in here," he said. "I'll show you the tools you can use."
Tiffin stepped inside the room and Dewey followed.
The room was twenty feet deep and half as wide. Metal racks ran the length of the long sides providing shelves for the heavy duty plastic storage boxes as well as various tools laying loose on the shelves between the boxes.
Jake walked halfway down the room and stopped. He turned and pointed to the shelves on either side of him and back toward the door they'd entered. "All of this," he said. "You can use all of this. You see that red case?" He gestured to a box sitting waist high on the shelf beside him. "From there to the back wall." He wagged his finger at Tiffin. "Don't touch any of that. Got it?"
Tiffin hung her hands on her hips. "Got it." Her eyes darted around at the tools and boxes on the shelves she'd been given access to. Her wide grin pushed her cheeks up into rosy balls.
"Dewey," Jake said.
"Yes, Jake?"
"You probably won't need to get into any of these, but same rule applies to you."
"Of course," Dewey said.
"You recognize any of these?" Jake asked Tiffin and pointed at a few items. "Arc welder, wire testers." He picked up a small yellow box which had a screen on one half the top of it. It was handheld size. He gave it to Tiffin. "Hang on to this one."
She took it.
"Sarah's pretty good at running her own diagnostics on most areas of the ship," Jake said. "But if she's busy, or if you just want to check things out for yourself. You can plug this into any of the standard terminals throughout the ship. You'll get a readout of whichever system you plug it into. It's right about eighty percent of the time."
"Cool," Tiffin said while looking down at the device. She pushed a few of the buttons on it, cycling through the menus.
"It's got a crystal battery," Jake said. "Shouldn't need a charge for the next couple years."
"Wow. Really?" Tiffin turned the device over, examining it.
"Yeah," Jake said. "I don't really understand the things, but it's the same sort of tech that most of the ship draws its power from. Don't feel you have to fix everything right away. But I expect you to work on at least one thing each day. Remember, Sarah can give you a list."
Tiffin nodded, still playing with the buttons on the device Jake had given her. "Oh, I will. This is awesome."
"Now, let's head to the bridge," Jake said. "Dewey, I want to show you how a few things there work."
"Sure thing," Dewey said.
"Can I come too?" Tiffin looked up from the device.
"Yeah, I suppose," Jake said, then walked out of the room.
Tiffin and Dewey followed. The door closed.
Jake glanced at the panel, then at Tiffin. "I'll have Sarah set you both up to access that room and the other ones you'll need."
"This is so exciting to be part of a team," Tiffin said. "You won't regret it."
Jake noticed he'd tensed up. He exhaled. "It's a crew. A crew. And… ah, nevermind. Come on. The bridge is this way. But you guys already know that.
Chapter 5
A few minutes later they walked through the whooshing doorway and onto the bridge.
"Hello, Jake," Sarah said through the speakers overhead. "Welcome back to the bridge, Tiffin, Dewey."
"How are you doing darlin'?" Jake said.
"I can't complain," Sarah said.
"Hi, Sarah," Tiffin said, looking up at the speakers as she walked farther into the room.
Dewey glanced upward and waved his hand, then stopped and shrugged.
"Don't worry, Dewey," Sarah said. "I can see on the bridge. I have cameras around the room."
Dewey glanced around the large circular space. Small domes were positioned where the walls met the ceiling. There were five of them.
Jake walked toward the chairs which were in front of the large
viewing window. "You two don't have to use the jump seats. When you're in here, either one of these will work." He placed his hand on one of two chairs facing a series of buttons, toggles, and small display screens—all at arm's length. He turned back to Tiffin and Dewey. "As long as you don't touch anything until I say it's okay."
"Right," Dewey said.
Tiffin walked over to the controls. She stood to the right of one of the two chairs where Jake stood. She reached out with her right hand to the controls. "What do these do?"
"Don't!" Jake said, moving his hand toward hers. "Don't touch anything yet. You don't know what these controls do. Sarah, turn these controls off for now."
"Done," Sarah said.
"I wasn't going to touch anything," Tiffin said.
Jake pointed at the different controls. "Communications. Navigation. Weapons systems." He rattled off five other stations, as he pointed around the room.
"How did you manage all of this without a crew?" Dewey asked.
"Oh, I can take care of all the ship's systems," Sarah said. "Jake mostly naps."
Jake glanced at the nearest camera. "Very funny." He looked back to Tiffin and Dewey. "She does run the ship most of the time."
Dewey staggered toward one of the chairs, catching it only a moment before losing his balance completely. He looked sick. He stared at the floor and his head swayed a little.
Tiffin rushed over to his side. "Are you okay?"
Dewey didn't answer. Instead, he mumbled and continued to hang his head and look at the floor.
"Dewey," Jake said. "What is it?"
"Jake," Sarah said.
"Not now." Jake waved his hand at one of Sarah's cameras.
Tiffin placed her hand on Dewey's shoulder. "Dewey, are you alright?"
He didn't respond.
"Maybe you should sit down," she said.
"Jake," Sarah said. "There's a—"
"Not now, Sarah," Jake said.
Dewey stopped mumbling and swaying his head. He looked up at Tiffin and then to Jake. "Does this ship have shields?"
"What?" Tiffin said.
"Yes," Jake said. "Why?"
Sarah interrupted again. "Jake."
He turned to face one of the cameras. "What Sarah? What is it?"
Dewey raised his arm and pointed out the large viewing window over the control panels in front of the three of them.
Jake looked through the thick crystal glass-like pane, designed to withstand the pressure difference between the safe environment inside the ship and the cold vacuum of space on the other side. "Oh, shit. Sarah—"
"Magnetic shields are up," Sarah said. "Now you see what I was trying to tell you?"
"How could I not see it?" Jake rushed over to the controls, shoving Dewey aside to get to one section of the panels. "Turn these back on!"
"How did that—" Tiffin was motionless, staring at the massive asteroid floating toward them.
"Should I fire?" Sarah asked.
Jake rapidly pressed several buttons and switches on the control panel, glancing back and forth between small readout screens and the approaching asteroid.
"Why is it glowing?" Tiffin asked.
"No," Jake said. "Don't fire. The blast would set it off. The explosion could be too much for the repulsion shields and the hull."
"It's coming too fast," Sarah said. "It's too close. I can't get out of the way."
Jake shot a glance to Tiffin and Dewey and then to the chairs. "Hang on to something!" He grabbed the top edge of one of the chairs with his right hand and braced himself with his other hand on the edge of the control dash. "Now!"
Tiffin and Dewey scrambled to get into the chairs. She clenched the edges of her seat and looked up at Jake.
The look on her face told Jake she wanted him to say something comforting, fast. But there wasn't time.
Dewey leaned to sit in his chair but was jolted to the floor as the asteroid impacted the repulsion shields, jarring the entire ship.
Two thirds of the view out the massive window above the controls was obstructed by the rust colored asteroid. The latent charge from within the huge space rock interacted with the ship's magnetic field. Flashes of light erupted from the surface of the asteroid and arcs of electric current raced across the glowing barrier which was the ship's shield.
The ship rumbled and creaked. The flashes of light continued. The asteroid remained a hundred feet from the hull of the ship, but was pushing against the repulsion field.
"What's happening?" Tiffin tightened her grip on the sides of her chair.
"These are the asteroids used to fold space," Jake said. "They're riddled with a highly volatile element which generates temporary breaches in space. That's why we didn't see it coming. It must've jumped into the space near the ship."
"That's crazy," Tiffin said.
"Amazing." Dewey, still on the floor, had his gaze fixed on the asteroid.
Jake reached down and gave him a hand, helping him up.
Several seconds later the rumbling and flashes ceased.
"It's stopped," Tiffin said.
"No," Jake said, letting go of the back of the chair and standing up straight. "It's moving us with it now."
Dewey took a step closer to the asteroid. "So we're stuck to the side of the asteroid?"
"Not for long," Jake said. "Sarah."
"Yes, Jake."
"Can you measure the force of the asteroid against the field?"
"Yes. The variations in output from the field generators along the ship's hull will give me an indication of the force and its distribution."
"Nice," Tiffin said, relaxing her grip on the side of her chair and nodding her head. "You're clever."
"Thanks, Tiffin," Sarah said. "Do you want the measurements, Jake?"
"Not the numbers," he said. "Which half of the ship is getting more of the force?"
"The side with the asteroid," Sarah said.
"Really?" Jake glared at the camera above him. "I mean the fore or the aft."
"Oh, yes. Slightly more of the asteroid is pressing against the shields at the rear half of the ship."
"That's good," Jake said.
"What are you thinking?" Dewey who was looking at the side of the asteroid still filling most of the view out the window turned slowly to Jake.
"We're going to ease away."
"Ease away?" Tiffin rose from her chair to face Jake. "Won't the asteroid and shield flare up again?"
Jake reached over to the control panel and pressed a few buttons, bringing some readings up on the screen. "Sarah, the shield has kept the body of the asteroid the same distance from the hull across the side of the ship?"
"Yes."
"Jake," Tiffin said. "If we move the ship from the asteroid's path… the interaction with the shield. Isn't that dangerous?"
"There won't be any interaction with the shield," Jake said.
"Why?" Tiffin looked confused.
Jake faced her. "Because we're going to drop the shield."
"Are you serious?" Tiffin gestured with both hands open, then she stuck her right arm out and pointed to the asteroid. "That thing's huge. We'll be crushed!"
"She's right," Dewey said.
Jake addressed Dewey. "You telling me you saw a glimpse into the future on this?"
"No," Dewey said. "But the asteroid is pushing us along in front of its path. The shields are keeping it at an even distance from the ship. If we drop the shields, the asteroid will fill the gap and smash into us."
Jake chuckled. "So you two think we should stay on the asteroid ride and see where it takes us?"
"Well, no," Tiffin said.
"Take it easy," Jake said. "I'm only kidding. We're not going to do that and we're not going to get smashed into bits. At least, I'm pretty sure we aren't."
"Oh," Tiffin said. "That's so reassuring."
"I don't see this ending well, Jake," Dewey said.
Jake looked at him. "Seeing the future?"
Dewey took a second before answering
. "No."
"Okay. Then we do it my way," Jake said. "Sarah, get ready to boost the propulsion and drop the shield on my signal."
"Jake," Dewey said, grabbing Jake's arm, "do you think we'll get out of the way in time?"
Jake looked at Dewey. "Mostly."
Dewey looked shocked. "Mostly? What do you mean, mostly?"
Jake turned away from him and looked over the small displays on the control panels once again.
"Jake," Tiffin said.
He didn't look up from the controls. He was busy moving sliding levers and pushing a few buttons and toggles. He placed his forefinger on the side of one of the small screens for a moment. Then he nodded and moved his hand to another screen. He glanced back and forth between the two displays. "Yeah? What is it?"
"I don't want to die," Tiffin said.
Jake raised his eyes from the displays and gazed through the large crystal glass window at the massive charged asteroid. He turned to Tiffin. "Neither do I. Trust me."
"I should've stayed on Eon," Dewey said as he walked away from the viewing window and hung his head.
Tiffin glanced at him. "We'll make it, Dewey."
"Sarah," Jake said.
"Yes, Jake."
"When I say go, drop the back shields first. When the asteroid moves in to that void, crank up the drives and drop the front shields. Make sure you get the order right or we're screwed."
"I think I can handle that," Sarah said.
Jake flipped up a few toggles on the control dash and held his hand at the ready below the last one in the row.
"What's that for?" Tiffin asked.
Jake didn't respond to Tiffin. "Okay, Sarah. Now!"
There was a flicker and a visible pulse of energy outside the rear of the ship which was partly visible through the large viewing window. The asteroid took on a bright glow and crackled at the same time. Then the massive rock rolled inward, filling the space where the rear shield had been.
"Jake!" Tiffin screamed, watching the asteroid quickly approach the hull of the ship.
He said nothing, but flipped the last toggle. He leaned toward the large crystal glass and peered toward the rear of the ship. "Good."
"What?" Tiffin said, stepping closer to Jake to see what he was seeing. She had to catch herself with both hands against the edge of the controls as the sudden thrust of the ship jolted her off balance.
Heat Seeker Page 2
