She turned and did another scan of the board and screens, “As far as the ship goes, I have a green board.” She faced Wills, “I believe all that remains is the release from Captain Helt and confirmation that we have all of our crew aboard; other than that, I would suggest that you check in with Port Control, Erica, and Nanci.”
Wills sat upright, “Ouch! You’re right.”
He spun the chair around to face the console and started tapping on the com panel. The overhead screen to the left produced the face of Gerald Falmann at the Flight System Control Center, “Ah, Admiral, CeCe, Doctor Stoker, Doctor Treelam, I see that you’re all on the Weasel; what can I do for you?”
Wills spoke, “Jerry, I need an update on the other ships. Sorry I haven’t checked in ‘til now, but I’ve been busy. Say, you’re there kind of late, aren’t you?”
“I thought I’d stick around until you were heading out; the rest of the ships have already left. The Santana was first off followed by the Melinda. The Winslow and Pugnacious left three hours later and the Gregory Falls left two hours ago. The Kellogg escorted the Gregory Falls and made sure it had a solid vector for Forest before jumping; the Rance left an hour later. The Streak is out of service, but I would guess that you know that by now. When are you lifting? There’s a huge crowd lining the walkway waiting to see the Weasel takeoff.”
Wills’ eyebrows went up and he looked at CeCe; she looked surprised too and started tapping on the exterior pickup panel. Several of the screens at the back of the circle changed to a view back toward Michigan City; there had to be several thousand people along the bay-front walkway.
Everyone turned to look at the screens and everyone got the same, wide grin on their faces. Wills turned back to Falmann, “Okay, Jerry, it didn’t occur to me that the departure of a local fixture would be such an event, but I can’t say I’m surprised. Anyway, Captain Helt is making some last minute adjustments, but it looks like we should be out of here in an hour or thereabouts. I’ll call in for the usual traffic clearance.”
“I’ll be here, Admiral.”
Wills broke the connection and put in a call to Erica. She appeared on the screen standing in front of a mass of people, “Well, Erica, it seems like you have your hands full.”
She smiled and looked around at the crowd, “Actually, no, Admiral; the mood is quite festive and everybody is having a good time. When do you expect to leave?”
“Oh, I’m looking at something like an hour from now. I just wanted to check with you and see if we should expect any more volunteers?”
“I don’t think so Admiral; the last call from my people at the port said that there were no more volunteers, and the people from the Streak had just arrived. Last count indicates that you should have 872 total sent out from us. I told them to contact you directly if anyone else shows up.”
Wills could feel a lightening of his tension; having competent people working around the edges of the job was a relief.
“Thank you, Erica; see you in a few weeks.”
“Have a nice trip, Admiral; bye CeCe.”
CeCe waved and Wills cut the connection, “Okay, good; so far, so good.”
The next call was to Nanci; she, too, appeared against a background crowded with people, “How are things going for you, Nanci?”
She looked slightly frazzled, “Well, I got 317 passengers from the Gregory Falls quartered here in town; 42 others volunteered to go with you, and you should have them by now. I made sure that everyone was tied into our data link system so I could keep them posted on events. I have the Marks Island Winery dedication lined up, two more trips to wineries over the next couple of weeks, mountain hiking trips, trail rides, glider flights, boating, swimming, and farm tours. Most of them are here now, and I organized a hasty cookout by the HQ building. HowmIdoingWhenyaleaving?
CeCe turned from the screen while Nanci caught her breath, “There are a lot of people wanting to get rid of us.”
Wills smiled, “About an hour, Nanci. Calm down, relax; I think it sounds like you’re doing an excellent job. You might check and see if any of them have construction experience or just want to lend a hand with the T8 project. Contact Benais Salmond if anyone wants to help.”
Nanci brightened, “That’s a good one; I’ll let them know.”
They said their farewells and broke the connection.
Wills turned lazily in his chair, “Suddenly, I think I’m heading for less of a problem than the one I’m leaving behind.”
#
They discussed the coming trip for the next forty minutes while they waited. CeCe sat in her command chair and kept an eye on the screen that showed the growing number of strain gauges registering on the data link.
She interrupted Wills when she pointed up at the screen, “Number 148 just came online.”
Stoker looked at her, “Is that number significant?”
“Yes, there are 148 structural attach points for the lift ring around the hull. This should mean that Captain Helt and his people are about finished. In fact,” she spun in her seat and checked readings on the console and then swung back to look at the strain gauge readings, “they’re running a low-level orbiting pulse through the ring now to make sure that all of the gauges are operating.”
She turned back to the console, and locked her chair up and full forward, “Admiral, I think it’s time we started knocking a few items off of the pre-flight checklist. I know the new AI system is supposed to handle that, but I’m nervous enough without letting a metal box control the rest of my life.”
Wills smiled and set his chair in its
