“I’ll eat, but no analyzer. I don’t want my vision back just yet.”
“What?”
“Don’t you see? My visions have moved to a new level. I think it’s because of my blindness.”
“They’re concerned that you might get worse without Maelia fixing things up.”
“Well… they can check, but unless I’m getting worse, they’re not going to touch me.”
When the analysis was complete, the specialist briefed her. “We see no change, nor do we believe we could do much if we did. Your Rider might be able to effect repairs, but the longer she waits, the harder it will be. Neurological pathways are damaged, and the longer they remain damaged, the more they atrophy. You need her back as soon as Sir Tarn is done with her.”
O’Brien found Akurea hard at work in her quarters with the door open again. Two computers were on her desk now, and they had been for days. “Don’t you ever close the door?” he asked, poking his head in.
She looked up and smiled, then stretched. “I don’t like feeling confined. Come in.”
“How’s it going?”
“I’m transposing circuits from the Chessori computer to my own, but I’m stuck. I have a circuit here that I just can’t figure out. How’s it going for you?”
“For me, good. For the crew, not so good. They’re pretty banged up.”
She frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“You don’t know?”
“No. I’ve been heads-down.”
“When’s the last time you ate?”
“Uh, yesterday, I think.”
He frowned. “We keep forgetting about you. I’m sorry. Most of the crew just fought a battle at Korban’s headquarters, and it was bad. Tarn and Stven are in a hospital, and so are a few others.”
She sat back, stunned. “I knew there was some commotion going on, but I didn’t know what it was all about. Krys must be a wreck.” She glanced at the Empire screen in front of her, did a double-take, and jumped up from her chair. “Agh!”
“What’s the problem?”
She motioned him over, pointing a shaking hand at the screen. “I’ve been struggling with this circuit for hours. It’s suddenly there, and I didn’t put it there.”
O’Brien looked up at the ceiling with a grin. “George, are you helping out?”
“Maybe a little.”
O’Brien took her arm. “I’m taking you to dinner. Come on.”
“Uh, who’s buying?”
“I only go Dutch.”
“What?”
“Never mind.”
She stared at him as they headed toward the central shaft. “It’s just a small ship. How is it that I don’t know what’s going on?”
“It’s not that small of a ship, Akurea,” he corrected her, “at least not where I come from. You tend to keep to yourself, and we threw the operation together pretty quickly.”
“An operation that required the participation of two Knights?”
“They’re special. They took out a bunch of gleasons this time.”
“Gleasons! We’re fighting gleasons now?”
“Looks like it.”
“Well, look, part of fixing ships is to test them out. I’m a pilot, and I can work the guns. I’ve heard a lot of shooting going on. Do you need any help?”
He rubbed his jaw. “With Stven out of the picture for a while, we might, but Krys gave you another assignment, and it’s important.”
“I need to be alive to complete it.”
“I’ll keep you in mind. I don’t know where we’re going next, and you might be able to fill in gaps in the bridge rotation.”
“You said this is not a small ship where you come from. Where, exactly, is that?”
“You’ll have to check with Captain Stven on that one.”
“He’s in a tank.”
“Oh… well, someone else then.”
