frame mounts. It was hanging free of the exterior hull for at least twenty meters. He prayed the starboard side would fare better, and to his surprise, it did. The stress on that beam was extreme but more evenly distributed, resulting in the desired twisting and reshaping. When the Samson came to rest the port side beam read as almost completely straightened.
'I need everyone on the Samson to check in. All other vessels are clear to land.' Captain Valance said into his comm as he locked the pilot controls. He was out of his seat and beside Finn at the engineering console in seconds. 'How did we do?'
'The lower port beam is almost completely straight, to within half a degree, and I think it's still strong enough.'
Captain Valance performed a quick scan and nodded. 'You're right. It's not showing much fatigue, she could bear the load twice the mass of what the Samson is build to haul.'
'The other one's shot though, and the port side dorsal beam is still twisted two point three degrees.'
'And bent point four degrees in the middle.' Captain Valance stared at the structural hologram quietly for a moment before continuing. 'We'll have to replace them both.'
'You're really going to rebuild her, Captain?' Finn knew it would be a lot of work, but his name would be engraved on the vessel's hull forever if he was part of the team who directed the reconstruction.
A silent message on the Captain's comm unit from Crewcast informed him that no one on the Samson was injured and he sighed, he actually sighed with relief. It surprised Finn to no end, he knew Jacob Valance cared about his crew, but he still wasn't used to seeing emotional reactions. 'Let's go topside and take a look at our new home,' Captain Valance said quietly.
Finn and the Captain's copilot followed him to the upper hatch in the main hallway behind the bridge. With a twist and a yank of an overhead handle a set of collapsible stairs dropped down and locked into place. The outer hatch came open only after Captain Valance pressed his shoulder to it. Finn suspected it would be even more difficult to close properly.
They were the first to stand atop the Samson and look across the seemingly endless sea of ships ahead of them. The wind was warm, and carried the smell of ozone tinged with trash. The sun was disappearing behind Kambis, turning the horizon a deep red and yellow. Hundreds of thousands of lights glimmered in the makeshift city all surrounding them, and there was such a variety of ships that it was dizzying. He used to love watching them come and go from the port on his home world, and thought he had seen every shape and style. That couldn't have been further from the truth.
The wind on his face was pleasant as well, it had been a while. The smell was something he'd get used to, living so close to refineries during his childhood had conditioned him to ignore most of the offensive odours such technology put out. Just being in atmosphere again was nice for a change, but he knew he'd miss being on a ship, in transit before long.
'You know the Triton never felt like my ship. I knew how to run her, and I think I even got to know her secrets well enough, but she never felt like mine,' Captain Valance said quietly. 'She never felt like home.'
Finn didn't reply, didn't know what to say. Instead he looked at the man from out of the corner of his eye. He looked weary, but still had a sureness, a bearing that left no doubt that he was in command about him.
'We're going to repair the Samson because without her we don't have an anchor. I don't want you to think about anything else, Finn. If Price were here you'd be working with him, but you'll have to make do with the people we have instead. Don't worry about what it costs, just tell me what you need. I'll find a way.'
'Yes sir.' Finn couldn't think of a moment in which he was more proud. At the same time, he knew the work ahead would be difficult, but it was important, and if it went well he’d be remembered for it. 'When I'm finished it'll be as though you put her back together with your own hands.'
“Good. I’ll work on getting our people back. Watching the Samson fall apart over the last few hours has reminded me of something, something I should have remembered before half the crew who landed with us in the Dower Wastes left us. People are what we need now. Not the ones who left, not just anyone, but the people we’ve come to know, come to trust. More than anything else, the qualities those people bring with them will determine how this all works out. Remember that when you choose your build team.”
Chapter 30
Ashley was able to get a handle on most of the ship systems with Larry's help, and was happy that all non- essential machinery had been deactivated. Much of the rest of the machinations aboard the Triton were being maintained remotely from the Engineering Control Deck, which had come under siege again. Soldiers were trying to cut into the vault like substructure from the deck above, and according to Larry, who she still regarded warily, they were making moderate progress. It was only a matter of hours unless someone interfered with their work.
“Why don't you slow them down?” Ashley asked off handedly as Zoe climbed into her lap. Even her favourite game couldn't keep her occupied forever, especially when she looked so tired. For a moment Ashley considered trying to make the youngster at home in the chair beside her, but thought better of it. The little fair haired nafalli wasn't too difficult to work around, and she had seen how Iloona's younger children were with her. Nafalli young liked to cling to their elders, and for the time being, Ashley was Zoe's choice.
“If they do get through they'll have to deal with everyone in engineering, and there's no way they set up down there without arming themselves.”
“Ah, so what are you doing?”
Larry's lips drew into a thin, tight smile as he nodded to himself. “Can't wait to see me go back out there?”
“No, I'm just wondering.”
Ashley refocused one of her console displays on a wormhole that appeared momentarily in the dust cloud, it disappeared as quickly as it came up on the passive scanners. She hoped the Captain and everyone else was right behind. Someone had to save them.
“I knew this would happen. Listen, I'm the same Larry you met only there's a side of me you didn't know about. I'm sure there are plenty of things you haven't told everyone about yourself.”
Ashley kept her voice calm and soothing for Zoe's benefit. In reality she'd never been so nervous; “Okay, I'll get used to it,” she offered as a placation.
“Ashley, I could be the most important friend you have on the ship. I know you have the Captain's ear, and he made you Master at the Helm, but you don't see how often they cut you out. It's been happening more over the last two weeks. The Freeground crew have just taken over with the Captain's blessing, and they haven't consulted you on anything.”
“I handle the pilot rotation on the bridge, help people navigate the training system, review qualifiers and fly the ship.”
“But do you really get to make the decisions a Master At The Helm should be? You should be consulted before destinations are chosen, when modifications are made to propulsion and flight control, and whenever something changes the way this ship moves, or where it's going. That's what a Master At The Helm is for; to help the Captain guide the ship from port to port and keep the ship on a safe course.”
“But we're not in a part of the galaxy I know, and I'm new to command. If Captain trusts the people from his home station, then I'll trust them too. Besides, Stephanie is still Security Chief and our Engineering Chief isn't from Freeground either.”
“All right, but that's besides the point. What I'm saying is that there may come a time when you need someone who knows the ship better than anyone, can get you anywhere without people noticing, or can make something happen for you. That person is me. Your discretion comes at a price, I wouldn't ask you to keep my secret if I didn't have something to offer in return.”
The thought hadn't occurred to Ashley. If they made it through the crisis she might have real power over the most dangerous person on the ship. The image of soldiers being killed in front of her returned, and, as though sensing how unnerving the memory of it was, Zoe roused from her light sleep and looked up at her. Ashley soothed
