tz.theicarushunt-第52部分

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cast…off　interior　plates　to　build　a　cylindrical　sheath　running　between　them　at　their　widest　points。　From　the　outside；　the　main　body　will　then　appear　to　be　a　tapered　cylinder　with　rounded　ends　instead　of　two　joined　spheres。〃
　〃With　just　the　nose　cone　and　engine　sections　sticking　out　on　either　side；〃　I　said；　a　tingle　of　cautious　excitement　running　through　me　as　I　looked　over　at　Ixil。　〃Possible？〃
　〃I　don't　see　why　not；〃　he　said。　His　voice　was　its　usual　calm；　but　the　ferrets　were　twitching　again。　〃At　least　in　theory。　We've　got　the　equipment　to　spot…weld　the　plates　to　the　spheres；　and　the　plates　themselves　can　be　connected　together　with　the　same　fasteners　that　are　holding　them　together　now。〃
　〃I　thought　the　cutting　torch　was　dead；〃　Shawn　reminded　him。
　〃We　also　have　an　arc…welding　torch；〃　Ixil　told　him。　〃It's　still　functional。〃
　〃What　about　supports？〃　Nicabar　asked。　〃You're　not　going　to　have　any　structural　strength　to　speak　of　here。〃
　〃We　could　add　some　braces　in　from　beneath；〃　Ixil　said。　〃Assuming　the　welding　rods　hold　out；　we　ought　to　have　enough　material。〃
　〃And　assuming　we　don't　run　out　of　power　to　run　the　welder；〃　Tera　said。　〃How　are　we　on　fuel；　McKell？〃
　〃We've　got　more　than　enough　to　drive　the　generators　as　long　as　we'll　need；〃　I　assured　her。　〃My　question　is　how　long　Shawn's　medicine　is　going　to　last。〃
　There　was　a　moment　of　unfortable　silence。　Apparently；　that　aspect　hadn't　yet　occurred　to　them。　〃Yes；　that　is　rather　a　limiting　factor；〃　Everett　conceded。　〃I'd　say　we　have　no　more　than　eight　or　nine　days　left　on　this　supply。　And　that's　if　we　stretch　it　out。〃
　〃Doesn't　give　us　much　time；〃　Tera　said。　〃Especially　since　we　also　have　to　get　to　a　port　once　all　this　conversion　work　is　finished。〃
　〃True。〃　I　looked　at　Shawn。　〃What　do　you　think？　Can　you　handle　a　week　on　low　doses？〃
　He　snorted。　〃I'll　handle　a　week　on　no　doses　if　I　have　to；〃　he　said　bitterly。　〃You　probably　don't　know　it；　but　the　Patth　had　some　major　harvesting　operations　on　Ephis；　and　were　furious　when　the　monwealth　closed　them　down　by　interdicting　the　place。　I　don't　think　I'd　get　any　sympathy　from　them　if　they　grabbed　us。　And　no　borandis；　either。〃
　〃Though　they　would　probably　consider　that　you　had　done　them　a　small　service；〃　Chort　said　quietly。　〃You；　at　least；　they　could　allow　to　die　naturally。〃
　Tera　shivered。　〃And　on　that　note；　I　vote　we　get　going　on　this。〃
　〃Seconded；〃　I　agreed；　standing　up。　〃Ixil；　let's　go　break　out　the　tools。〃
　　
　CHAPTER　15
　
　IT　WAS　ONE　thing；　I　discovered；　to　suggest　disassembling　an　entire　starship　from　the　inside　out。　It　was　another　thing　entirely　to　actually　set　about　doing　it。
　Still；　it　was　quickly　apparent　that　the　very　nature　of　the　Icarus's　odd　design　was　going　to　work　in　our　favor。　On　a　normal　starship　all　the　bulkheads　and　decks　were　solidly　riveted　or　welded　together；　with　most　of　the　various　sections　cast　or　molded　to　the　specific　fit　required。　Our　bulkheads　and　decks；　in　contrast；　were　fastened　together　with　the　same　connectors　Cameron's　people　had　used　on　the　inner…hull　plates；　which　made　disassembly　a　fast　and　simple　process。　Furthermore；　all　the　interior　framing　had　been　created　from　the　same　meter…square　plates：　a　single　thickness　for　the　inner　hull　and　most　of　the　walls；　double　or　triple　thickness　for　the　decks　and　supporting　bulkheads。　In　one　of　my　rare　moments　alone　with　Tera　I　asked　about　that；　and　she　confirmed　my　guess　that　Cameron's　techs　had　designed　it　that　way　on　purpose。　Shaped　or　molded　bulkhead　sections　might　have　raised　eyebrows　with　Meima's　customs　inspectors；　but　simple　meter…square　building　plates　wouldn't　even　rate　a　yawn。
　Ixil's　inventory　included　only　three　of　the　connector　tools；　but　since　there　was　also　a　great　deal　of　hauling　to　be　done　the　limited　number　worked　out　just　fine。　Cameron；　bless　him；　had　used　high…strength　but　low…weight　metal　posites；　which　meant　that　even　Shawn　and　Chort　could　lug　the　plates　to　the　wraparound　with　relative　ease。　We　rotated　jobs　every　twenty　minutes　or　so；　with　an　eye　toward　not　fatiguing　any　one　set　of　muscles。　As　Ixil　suggested　at　one　point；　there　was　likely　to　be　more　than　enough　muscle　fatigue　to　go　around。
　For　the　first　six　hours　we　concentrated　on　simple　disassembly；　starting　with　the　nonsupporting　walls　and　moving　on　to　bulkheads；　shifting　the　plates　into　the　wraparound　and　stacking　them　by　the　hatch。　At　that　point；　I　decided　we　had　enough　material　to　start　with　Chort's　exterior　modification　plan。　We　still　had　two　shipboard　suits…the　third　had　been　left　behind　on　Xathru　when　we'd　filed　Jones's　death　report…and　of　course　Chort　had　his　own　suit　as　well。　Putting　Tera　and　Nicabar　into　the　smaller　and　larger　sizes；　respectively；　I　sent　them　out　with　Chort；　the　welder；　and　two　connector　tools　and　crossed　my　fingers。
　It　worked　out　better　than　even　my　best　level　of　cautious　hope。　Chort；　it　turned　out；　was　quite　petent　with　the　welder；　at　least　as　skilled　as　Ixil　if　not　a　shade　more　so。　The　proper　positioning　of　the　plates　was　another　worry　I'd　had；　Tera　solved　that　one　by　the　three　of　them　assembling　an　entire　longitudinal　section　and　working　it　into　place　between　the　two　spheres　before　Chort　did　any　welding。　With　two　of　the　connector　tools　now　outside；　the　four　of　us　inside　shifted　jobs　again　from　mass　disassembly　to　the　more　delicate　task　of　moving　the　gear　from　the　now　nonexistent　rooms　to　new　quarters　against　the　inside　of　the　hull。　The　large　sphere's　gravitational　level　of　。85　gee　made　the　tasks　of　lifting　and　carrying　marginally　easier　while　still　avoiding　the　missteps　and　inertial　problems　of　low…gee　environments。
　The　days　settled　into　a　steady　if　slightly　frantic　routine。　Chort　spent　every　waking　hour　outside；　clearly　loving　it；　except　for　the　brief　periods　when　he　had　to　e　in　to　have　his　rebreather　recharged。　Those　of　us　who　could　fit　into　the　remaining　suits…which　was　everyone　except　Everett…took　our　turns　outside　with　him；　most　of　us　not　nearly　as　enthusiastic　about　the　wide…open　spaces　as　Chort　was。　The　rest　of　our　time　was　divided　between　more　disassembly；　shifting　the　necessary　equipment　to　the　inner　hull　and　tossing　the　rest；　or　collapsing　on　our　transplanted　bunks　in　the　near　a　that　had　taken　the　place　of　normal　sleep。
　With　the　verbal　sniping　and　general　lack　of　sociability　that　had　marked　the　trip　up　to　this　point　I　had　braced　myself　for　the　escalation　in　overall　tension　that　all　this　unscheduled　exercise　was　bound　to　create。　Once　again…and　this　one　was　really　to　my　surprise…it　didn't　happen。　There　was　the　occasional　snapped　word　or　under…the…breath　curse；　but　for　the　most　part　I　found　my　fellow　travelers　suddenly　behaving　far　more　like　a　seasoned　crew　than　a　random　collection　of　semi…hostile　strangers。
　In　retrospect；　I　suppose；　I　shouldn't　have　been　so　surprised　by　the　sudden　transformation。　Before　the　Najiki　near　miss　at　Utheno　we'd　been　little　more　than　interstellar　truck　drivers；　doing　a　dull　job　for　low　pay；　with　nothing　in　particular　to　look　forward　to　after　it　was　done；　and　with　only　the　vague　threat　of　a　possible　hijacking　to　make　it　even　marginally　interesting。　Now；　suddenly；　we　were　on　the　cusp　of　history；　with　the　chance　to　make　a　name　for　ourselves　and　at　the　same　time　stick　it　hard　to　the　Patth　and　their　hated　economic　empire。　We　had　the　chance　for　immortality…and；　even　more　importantly；　for　possibly　serious　riches…and　that　simultaneous　group　grab　for　the　brass　ring　was　drawing　us　firmly　together。
　Of　course；　lurking　behind　the　chance　to　make　history　was　the　darker　knowledge　that　if　the　Patth　caught　up　with　us　even　our　own　personal　histories　would　pretty　well　be　over。　That　was　undoubtedly　part　of　the　cooperation；　too。
　But　whatever　the　reason；　the　progress　the　first　four　days　was　nothing　short　of　remarkable。　So　much　so　that　midway　through　the　fifth　day　I　pulled　Everett　and　Ixil　off　the　work　crews　and　sent　them　aft　to　the　engine　room　to　start　recalibrating　the　equipment　that　the　Najiki　ion　attack　had　scrambled。　Then；　with　Chort；　Nicabar；　and　Shawn　working　outside；　I　took　Tera　over　to　her　puter　and　settled　in　for　a　crash　course　in　Alien　Stardrive　101。
　The　class　didn't　take　nearly　as　long　as　I'd　hoped　it　would。　〃That's　it？〃　I　asked　as　the　last　page　of　data　scrolled　to　the　top　of　the　puter　display。　〃That's　all　they　found？〃
　〃Be　thankful　we　have　even　this　much；〃　she　countered　tartly。　But　there　were　worry　lines　creasing　her　forehead；　too。　Perhaps；　like　me；　she　was　starting　to　realize　just　how　much　of　a　long　shot　this　whole　scheme　really　was。　〃The　idea　wasn't　to　sit　there　on　Meima　until　they　had　the　whole　thing　figured　out　to　five　decimals；　you　know。　The　minute　they　realized　what　they　had；　they　shot　that　message　off　to　Dad。　This　isn't　much　more　than　the　five　weeks　it　took　to　get　the　Icarus　parts　shipped　in　and　put　together。〃
　〃I　suppose；〃　I　conceded；　scowling　at　the　meter…square　opening　into　the　sphere；　a　disguised　access　panel　that　Tera　had　luckily　known　how　to　open。　〃And　they　never　got　more　than　a　couple　of　meters　inside？〃
　〃No；〃　she　said。　〃They　were　afraid　of　crossing　circuits　or　damaging　something　else　along　the　way。　You　can　see　for　yourself　what　a　maze　of　conduits　and　loose　wires　it　is　in　there。〃
　I　stretched　flat　along　the　hull　beside　the　hole　and　shined　a　light　in。　She　was　right：　It　was　a　jungle　in　there。　〃Reminds　me　of　the　engine　room；〃　I　said；　playing　the　light　around　some　more。　It　looked　like　there　were　panels　of　glowing　lights　on　what　little　I　could　see　of　the　wall　through　the　wiring。　〃I　wonder　if　it　was　planned　that　way　or　if　all　the　cable　ties　just　fell　apart　over　the　years。　You　said　there　was　another　access　from　the　other　side　of　the　sphere？〃
　〃Yes；　behind　the　secondary　breaker　panel　in　the　engine　room；〃　she　said。　〃They　put　hinges　on　the　breaker　panel　so　that　it　swings　right　out。〃
　〃Has　it　got　a　better　view　than　this　one？〃
　〃Not　really。〃　She　gestured　toward　the　access　hole。　〃They　tried　sending　in　probes；　but　the　umbilicals　kept　getting　caught　on　the　wiring　and　Dr。　Chou　was　afraid　they'd　tear　something　trying　to　get　them　loose。　They　had　one　self…guided　probe　that　got　in　a　little　farther；　but　something　confused　its　sensors　and　it　froze　up　pletely。〃
　〃Well；　we're　not　going　to　get　anywhere　without　a　plete　idea　of　what's　in　there；〃　I　said。
　〃I　hope　you're　not　suggesting　one　of　us