tz.theicarushunt-第29部分

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es　until　I　found　what　I　was　looking　for：　the　telltale　power　wires　and　coax　cable　of　an　inter；　their　ends　disappearing　through　the　inner　hull　half　a　meter　to　the　side　of　my　estimated　position　for　my　quarry's　escape　hatch。
　I'd　left　my　multitool　back　on　my　cabin　floor；　but　the　contact　edge　of　my　plasmic's　power　pack　was　rough　enough　for　my　purposes；　and　it　took　only　a　few　minutes　of　work　for　me　to　abrade　the　insulation　on　the　power　wires　enough　to　leave　a　small　section　of　bare　wire　on　each　of　them。　Putting　the　plasmic　aside；　I　touched　the　two　bare　spots　together。
　There　was　no　spark…the　power　level　was　far　too　low　for　that…but　what　the　operation　lacked　in　pyrotechnic　dramatics　it　more　than　made　up　in　personal　satisfaction。　Somewhere　in　the　bowels　of　the　Icarus；　I　knew；　a　circuit　breaker　had　just　popped　in　response　to　the　short　circuit　I'd　created。　All　I　had　to　do　was　find　which　one；　and　I'd　have　my　suspect　inter　identified。　And　with　it；　the　saboteur's　rabbit　hole。
　Making　sure　the　bare　spots　stayed　together；　I　wrapped　the　wires　as　best　I　could　to　hold　them　that　way。　On　most　starships　the　main　puter's　nursemaid　program　would　pick　this　up　in　a　flash　and　send　a　maintenance　flag　to　both　the　bridge　and　engine…room　status　boards。　With　the　Icarus's　archaic　system；　though；　I　doubted　that　it　had　such　a　program。　Even　if　it　did；　there　would　be　no　way　to　reset　the　circuit　breaker　until　the　wires　were　unjinxed。
　Which　left　only　the　problem　of　finding　my　way　back　to　my　cabin　and　hunting　up　the　appropriate　breaker　box　before　my　adversary　tumbled　to　what　I'd　done　and　fixed　the　short　circuit。
　Now　that　I　was　no　longer　engaged　in　a　chase；　the　navigational　task　was　straightforward　if　a　bit　tedious。　Holding　my　light　loosely　by　finger　and　thumb；　I　held　it　near　the　edge　of　the　inner　hull　and　watched　which　way　it　tried　to　turn。　That　gave　me　the　direction　of　ship's　down；　and　I　headed　that　way　until　further　measurements　with　my　impromptu　pendulum　showed　I　was　at　the　sphere's　South　Pole。　Picking　a　direction　at　random；　I　moved　along　it　for　a　few　meters；　then　began　circling　at　that　latitude　until　I　spotted　the　glow　of　my　cabin　light　filtering　through　the　opening。　Three　minutes　after　that；　I　was　back。
　With　everything　else　that　had　happened；　I　almost　forgot　to　check　my　own　inter's　coax　cable　for　tampering；　which　had；　after　all；　been　the　original　purpose　of　this　exercise。　Not　that　I　was　expecting　to　find　anything　else；　but　for　pleteness　it　seemed　the　proper　thing　to　do。　A　cursory　examination　was　all　it　took　to　discover　that　it　had　indeed　been　tapped　into。
　I　climbed　back　into　my　cabin；　noting　as　I　did　so　the　curious　fact　that　the　hull's　gravitational　field　seemed　to　hold　on　to　me　more　strongly　now　that　I'd　been　all　the　way　into　it　than　it　had　before　I'd　first　landed　on　the　outer　hull。　Possibly　it　was　just　my　imagination；　but　on　the　other　hand　this　field　was　so　unlike　anything　I'd　ever　experienced　anyway；　I　was　perfectly　willing　to　grant　it　one　more　bit　of　inexplicable　magic。　Between　this　and　the　Lumpy　Brothers'　exotic　weaponry；　the　strange　technology　was　starting　to　get　a　little　too　thick　on　the　ground　for　my　taste。
　Putting　hull…plate　connectors　back　in　with　a　multitool　was　a　different　skill　entirely　from　taking　them　out；　but　it　wasn't　that　hard　and　I　wasn't　going　to　bother　with　more　than　the　four　corners　for　now　anyway。　A　few　minutes　of　leafing　through　Ixil's　sheaf　of　schematics　and　I　had　the　proper　breaker　box　identified：　up　on　the　top　deck　with　the　rest　of　the　crew　cabins。
　The　general　stir　that　had　acpanied　Ixil's　injuries　had　long　since　faded　away；　and　the　Icarus　was　again　quiet。　I　climbed　the　aft　ladder　to　the　top　deck　and　moved　silently　down　the　corridor；　half　expecting　one　of　the　cabin　doors　to　open　and　someone　to　take　a　potshot　at　me。　But　no　one　did；　and　I　reached　the　breaker　box　without　incident。　It　was　recessed　into　the　bulkhead　at　the　forward　end　of　the　corridor　with　five　other　breaker　boxes；　just　beyond　the　forward　ladder。　It　was　also　quite　small；　though　given　that　it　apparently　only　contained　the　ship's　twenty…six　inter　breakers　I　shouldn't　have　expected　anything　very　big。
　Not　surprisingly；　given　the　Icarus's　designer's　overly　optimistic　faith　in　the　goodness　of　his　fellow　men；　none　of　the　breaker　boxes　was　locked。　The　hinges　squeaked　slightly　as　I　pulled　the　proper　one　open；　but　not　loudly　enough　to　wake　up　any　of　the　sleepers　nearby。　With　a　tingling　sense　of　anticipation；　I　shined　my　light　inside。
　According　to　Ixil's　schematic；　the　box　held　twenty…six　low…voltage　circuit　breakers。　At　the　moment；　however；　all　it　held　was　twenty…six　circuit…breaker　sockets。
　I　gazed　at　the　empty　box　for　a　few　more　seconds；　twenty…twenty　hindsight　turning　my　anticipation　into　a　sour　taste　in　my　mouth。　With　the　wires　still　touching　behind　the　inter；　the　saboteur　had；　of　course；　been　unable　to　reset　the　telltale　breaker。　So　he'd　simply　taken　them　all　out。
　Score　one　more　round　to　him。　This　was　getting　to　be　a　very　bad　habit。
　With　the　same　faint　squeak　of　the　hinges　I　closed　the　cabinet　door　again。　There　might　be　some　spare　breakers　aboard；　but　since　virtually　nothing　ever　went　wrong　with　the　things　there　very　well　might　not　be。　Besides；　anyone　smart　enough　to　have　anticipated　my　actions　in　the　'tweenhull　space　was　probably　already　ahead　of　me　there；　too。　By　the　time　I　found　the　spares…or　found　and　cannibalized　another　set　of　same…sized　ones　from　a　different　box…he　would　undoubtedly　have　the　inter　wires　fixed　again。
　The　walk　back　down　to　my　cabin　seemed　longer　somehow　than　the　upward　trip　had　been　a　few　minutes　earlier。　I　retrieved　a　connector　tool　from　the　mechanics　room　on　my　way　and　finished　sealing　the　hull　plate　back　into　position；　then　lay　back　down　on　my　bunk　and　tried　to　think。　I　thought　for　a　while；　but　it　didn't　seem　to　be　getting　me　anywhere；　so　I　went　back　up　to　the　mid　deck　to　check　on　the　bridge。
　Tera　was　still　faithfully　on　duty；　or　was　once　again　faithfully　on　duty　if　she'd　been　the　one　scooting　around　between　the　Icarus's　hulls。　I　volunteered　to　take　over　for　her　while　she　grabbed　something　to　eat　from　the　dayroom；　and　as　she　passed　by　me　I　tried　to　see　if　I　could　spot　any　oil　stains　on　her　clothing　or　smell　any　lingering　aromas。　There　was　nothing　out　of　the　ordinary　that　I　could　detect。
　But　then；　I　didn't　seem　to　have　picked　up　any　stains　or　smells　while　I　was　between　decks；　either。　Inconclusive；　either　way。
　As　soon　as　she　was　out　of　sight　I　did　a　plete　check　of　the　bridge；　equipment　and　course　heading　both。　Tera　was　still　reasonably　high　on　my　list　of　suspects；　and　even　if　she　wasn't　the　one　sporting　the　brand…new　collector's　set　of　circuit　breakers；　there　was　no　reason　a　saboteur　who　liked　fiddling　with　inters　couldn't　extend　his　hobby　to　more　vital　equipment。
　But　everything　checked　out　perfectly。　Sinking　wearily　into　the　mand　chair；　I　propped　my　elbows　on　the　armrests　and　my　chin　on　my　hands　and　stared　at　the　hypnotic　flickering　of　the　lights　on　the　status　display　until　Tera　returned。　We　exchanged　good…nights；　and　I　went　back　to　my　cabin。　Giving　up　my　efforts　at　thinking　as　at　least　temporarily　unproductive；　I　lay　down　on　my　bunk　and　went　to　sleep。
　　
　CHAPTER　9
　
　POTOSI　WAS　THE　most　populous　world　we'd　hit　yet；　big　enough　that　it　was　no　longer　a　colony　but　a　full…fledged　member　of　the　Najiki　Archipelago；　a　series　of　thirty　or　so　Najiki　worlds　scattered　across　several　hundred　light…years　and　winding　its　way　through　at　least　three　other　species'　claimed　regions　or　spheres　of　influence。　That　the　other　species　tolerated　what　might　otherwise　have　been　seen　as　an　unacceptable　intrusion　on　their　sovereign　territories　was　a　tribute　to　Najiki　diplomacy　and　bargaining　skill。
　That；　plus　their　unique　gift　for　creating　wealth　and　their　willingness　to　share　that　wealth　with　governments　who　were　generous　enough　in　turn　to　grant　them　right…of…way　corridors　through　their　space。　The　cynics；　of　course；　would　put　it　rather　more　strongly。
　There　were　five　major　InterSpiral…class　spaceports　on　the　Potosi　surface；　the　largest　and　most　modern　of　which　was　heavily　dominated　by　the　Patth　mercantile　fleet。　As　soon　as　we　were　in　range；　I　contacted　the　controller　and　asked　for　a　landing　bay　in　the　port　farthest　away　from　it。　Under　some　circumstances；　I　knew；　a　request　that　specific　might　have　raised　eyebrows；　or　whatever　the　Najik　used　for　eyebrows。　But　the　Patth　near　monopoly　on　shipping　had　hit　this　area　particularly　hard；　leaving　an　almost…universal　hatred　for　them　in　its　wake；　and　I　knew　that　the　controllers　would　take　it　in　stride。
　Unfortunately；　that　same　universal　hatred　also　meant　that　every　other　ining　non…Patth　ship　was　also　making　the　same　demand；　and　most　of　them　were　regular　visitors　here。　In　the　end；　in　a　result　that　fit　all　too　well　with　the　depressing　pattern　of　the　entire　trip　so　far；　not　only　were　we　not　granted　a　slot　half　a　continent　away　as　requested；　but　were　instead　put　down　square　in　the　middle　of　the　Patth　hub。
　Once　again；　I　told　the　rest　of　the　crew　to　stay　aboard　while　I　went　out　shopping。　Once　again；　they　weren't　at　all　happy　about　it。
　〃I　don't　think　you　understand　the　situation；〃　Everett　rumbled；　staring　disapprovingly　down　at　me　from　his　raised　position　on　the　slanted　deck。　〃It　seems　to　me　that　if　we　could　simply　take　Shawn　to　the　port　med　center　and　show　them　his　symptoms…〃
　〃We　could　then　all　sit　around　a　quiet　room　somewhere；〃　I　finished　for　him。　〃Explaining　to　the　nice　Najik　from　the　Drug　Enforcement　Division　just　how　it　was　he　got　a　borandis　addiction　in　the　first　place。　Remember　the　hijacking　threat…this　would　not　be　a　good　place　to　make　ourselves　conspicuous。〃
　He　snorted。　〃No　one　would　try　a　hijacking　here　in　the　middle　of　a　major　spaceport。〃
　〃You　must　be　kidding；〃　I　growled。　〃With　strangers　wandering　around　all　over　the　place；　and　no　one　knowing　anyone　else；　either　spacers　or　ground　personnel？　It's　a　perfect　spot　for　it。〃
　His　lips　pressed　briefly。　〃What　about　you？〃　Tera　spoke　up；　gesturing　at　my　newly　recolored　hair　and　eyes　and　the　set　of　false　scars　I'd　applied　to　my　cheek。　〃You　think　that　disguise　is　going　to　get　you　past　the　people　looking　for　you？〃
　〃Someone　has　to　go　hunt　up　a　drug　dealer；〃　I　reminded　her　patiently。　〃Would　you　rather　do　it　yourself？〃
　〃I　just　d