Page 56 of Collision!
Suvan brought a hovercart to their station, loaded with treats and the black sludge coffee.“We are nearly ready for you,” he said, with a gesture toward the capacitorus before stalking off.
Anoushka watched him go, then cast a curious glance at Mariah.“So, you and…Chief?”
Mariah’s needle slipped as she set it aside, stabbing into her palm.Luckily they were using her jumbo needles so she didn’t puncture herself.
Unfortunately it was the same hand Suvan had pierced, and that memory was sharper than any needle.
“It’s complicated,” she said around the pang.“Let’s finish this up.”
It was past midnight according to ship’s time when they transferred the knotwork to the mobius strip donut of the capacitorus.What looked so beautiful and airy in the Starlit Salon was cramped in the twisting tube of the containment unit.Mariah averted her gaze, focusing on the console monitor linked to the bar sensor, which showed the resonark and the team still in the salon.
Despite the fine resolution of all the high-tech screens, everyone seemed so far away.
“Captain.”Suvan had left a separate datpad on a stool that projected the Kufzasin lion-man looking majestic on his bridge.“We’ll have one shot at mirroring the resonark’s unique tesselation in the capacitorus.It will burn through the phlogiston flashcord almost instantaneously and supercharge the engines.But not for long.And based on the signal decay from the null cloud, we won’t be able to fabricate more cordage in time for another go.This is it.”
“Acknowledged,” Nehivar said.“Helm?”
“Course locked, Captain,” Delphine replied crisply.
“Ready in the salon.”Through the monitor, Ikaryo’s voice sounded small, and Mariah tightened her aching hands, which only hurt worse.
“Go.”
The serenade in the Starlit Salon, conducted by Remy, was as whimsical as the knotwork, an interweaving medley of the happy birthday song, a Christmas carol, some sportsball chant Mariah almost recognized, a pop anthem that had been old when she was a kid, and some extraterrestrial tunes she didn’t know, but all simple, emotional and engaging, building upon each other.Even through the small speaker, the choral passion poured out—along with a few shaky, off-key notes, which only added to the sense of heartfelt feeling.
Mariah flattened her sore hands over her heart.While they’d been adrift, she’d teased Remy about a sleepaway camp talent show, but she’d never imagined they’d actuallydoit.
Stuffed into the capacitorus, the woven flashcord began to glisten, as if liquifying.
If it lost shape before igniting…
She’d understood the basics: The containment unit had siphoned the “energy monster”outof the ship’s systems when they’d been hijacked.Now Suvan was essentially reversing the flow to inject a simulated version of that energy back into the engines.
Assuming their cobbled-together replica of quantum entanglement could hold a mirrored reflection of the resonark’s power without burning out the engines—or breaking the fading bond between the resonark and its mate.
Though the unit’s translucent honeycomb shell, the flashcord knot looked strangely fragmented, even though she knew it was one continuous cable.The other members of the engine team, who’d helped Suvan reconnect the conduits between the capacitorus and the engines, stood back as the unit hummed—in tune with the chorus in the salon.
She stepped closer, needing to be sure the knot was intact.Not that she could do anything about it now.
“Mariah—”
Just as the flashcord detonated, Suvan grabbed her and spun her away.
Impossibly bright light scorched around them.But he had her sheltered with her back against his chest, her head bent into the protection of his spiky arms.
She squeezed her eyes shut, and it was still too bright.
Before she could gasp, the flare was gone, leaving her dazzled when she peeked around Suvan at the empty capacitorus.The knot had burned away, not even ash remaining.
Suvan… “Your eyes,” she gasped.
“I didn’t guess it would blow like that.”His tone was chagrined.“Brace yourself.”
“Why—”
As he took them to their knees, he repeated the order into his comm, the warning words reverberating through every device.
And the shipleaped.
