The Goldenfels was almost certainly out of action for the future indefinite, but “almost” wasn’t the same as “certainly.” Daniel didn’t want to learn the hard way that Captain Bertram was an unusually lucky or resourceful officer.
“Ship,” Daniel ordered over the PA system and general push. “Prepare for liftoff. Over.”
He reviewed the pre-lift checklist, knowing that Chewning, Pasternak and the two midshipmen had already done the same thing. Three open hatches showed red when the display came up, but two winked out as he watched and the third—a C Deck bulk port—had shown a false positive once before.
“Six, this is Four,” said Pasternak from the Power Room. “I’ve got a team checking PC-17 but it may be five minutes. Over.”
“Roger, Four,” Daniel said. “We’re not in so much of a hurry that we need to chance dumping our whole atmosphere. Six out.”
Because of the necessary delay, Daniel leaned back and took a deep breath for the first time since he’d returned from the Goldenfels’ banquet a lifetime ago. Grinning with a sudden thought, he resumed, “Ship, this is Six. Those of you who watched the Goldenfels a few minutes ago have seen what happens when a ship engages its High Drive motors at the bottom of an atmosphere.”
He glanced toward Adele. Before he could ask her to do so, she began to rerun the explosions as an imagery loop available to all crewmen on their helmets if they didn’t have access to better displays.
“I’m sure you’ll all join with me in thanking our Signals Officer, Mistress Mundy,” he continued, “who entered the Goldenfels’ operating system and cross-connected it so that a signal to light the plasma thrusters would engage the High Drive instead.”
Daniel grinned broadly at the Signals Console, but Adele kept her head resolutely turned toward her display.
“Hip-hip!” Daniel said.
And the whole ship’s company echoed, “Hurrah!”
CHAPTER 20
Adele came back to the bridge after showering and putting on a clean utility uniform. The attack console was empty; like Adele, Betts had gone off-duty when the Princess Cecile entered the Matrix. Neither a missileer nor a signals officer was of any use until the vessel returned to sidereal space. There was no need of a gunner, either, but Sun had remained at his board; he shot Adele a worried look.
Daniel must’ve released the Klimovs from their quarters when the Sissie left sidereal space, because now they stood to either side of his console. Adele heard their raised voices while she was down the corridor, the Count saying, “. . . didn’t intend when we engaged you that you’d use the opportunity to wage war on your national enemies!”
“Captain Leary,” Adele said sharply as she stepped to her console. “Pray help me adjust this knob on my couch, if you’d be so kind.”
Sun started to rise, his mouth open with an offer to help. Adele pointed her left index finger at the gunner’s face and gave him a look that would’ve melted rock. He subsided with realization dawning in his eyes as thought replaced reflex.
“One moment, your excellency,” Daniel said, rising from his couch and by doing so forcing the Count to back away. Daniel stepped to Adele’s console, his lips pursed.
“I see . . . ,” he said. He deliberately kicked the knuckle of the hydraulic support with the heel of his boot. “I think you’ll find it satisfactory now, Mundy.”
The Klimovs had trapped Daniel, perhaps by conscious plan, by standing in their anger so close to his couch that he’d have had to touch one or the other of them to get up. His unwillingness to escalate the encounter in that fashion meant he stayed pinned on his back for them to hector from above. By implicitly ignoring the Klimovs as she intruded on the equation, Adele had freed her friend.
“Thank you, Captain,” she said politely. Turning to Klimov before he could resume his harangue, she continued, “Count Klimov, while I was in the Goldenfels’ data bank for other purposes, I downloaded all files dealing with the Princess Cecile or her personnel. Among other things, they indicated that Captain Bertram was able to track you because you discussed your plans with locals on Todos Santos and Tegeli. This of course is your right as owner of the Princess Cecile; but given Bertram’s animus against you, I thought you should be made aware of the risks your talk created.”