tz.theicarushunt-第55部分

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dge　and　pulled　myself　in。
　　
　CHAPTER　16
　
　THE　FIRST　LEG　of　the　trip　was　uneventful　enough。　There　was　plenty　of　light　ing　in　behind　me；　the　zero　gee　made　precision　movement　reasonably　easy；　and　I　had　a　mostly　clear　path　up　to　the　gap　I'd　pointed　out　to　Tera。　I　held　the　electronic…field　sensor　at　arm's　length　in　front　of　me　the　whole　way　like　a　mystical　talisman；　keeping　a　close　eye　on　its　readings　and　pausing　to　check　out　the　source　of　anything　that　made　its　indicators　so　much　as　twitch。
　There　was　current　flowing　in　here；　all　right；　plenty　of　it。　Fortunately　for　purposes　of　navigation；　the　strongest　sources　seemed　to　be　the　handful　of　panels　spaced　irregularly　along　the　inner　surface。　From　the　limited　view　I'd　had　from　the　access　hole　the　nature　of　the　panels　had　been　a　mystery；　up　close　and　direct；　the　situation　wasn't　much　clearer。　They　might　have　been　readout　displays；　giving　ever…changing　equipment…status　reports　in　a　strange　and　inprehensible　alien　script。　Unfortunately；　they　could　just　as　easily　have　been　ever…changing　mood　lights　there　for　the　edification　of　whoever　it　was　the　mindless　electronics　thought　was　on　duty　in　here。　All　in　all；　I　decided；　I　should　probably　stick　with　flying　starships　and　leave　the　more　esoteric　alien　evaluations　alone。
　After　a　few　minutes　I　reached　the　gap；　only　to　discover　that　my　earlier　interpretation　of　its　significance　was　not　nearly　as　clear…cut　as　I'd　thought。　It　turned　out；　in　fact；　to　be　far　from　certain　that　the　opening　was　proof　of　a　human…sized　body　having　gone　through　that　direction　at　all。　Partly　it　was　a　matter　of　that　particular　region　being　clearer　than　the　surrounding　area；　partly　it　was　a　trick　of　perspective　that　had　made　the　spot　seem　more　open　than　it　really　was。
　And　it　wasn't　particularly　open。　There　were　at　least　a　dozen　wires　crisscrossing　the　gap　a　half　meter　farther　in；　which　I　hadn't　been　able　to　see　from　my　previous　vantage　point。　If　Cameron　had　e　this　way；　he'd　done　a　good　job　of　smoothing　out　his　footprints　behind　him。
　Which　further　meant　that　it　was　suddenly　far　from　certain　that　Cameron　had　ever　e　in　here　at　all；　let　alone　that　he　was　floating　unconscious　or　dead　somewhere　inside。
　For　a　minute　I　played　my　light　through　the　gap　into　the　darkness　beyond；　watching　the　glints　as　the　beam　reflected　off　bits　of　alien　metal　or　plastic　or　ceramic；　wondering　what　I　should　do　now。　If　Cameron　wasn't　in　here；　then　continuing　on　would　be　not　only　unnecessary　but　probably　dangerous　as　well。
　Of　course；　if　Cameron　wasn't　in　here；　then　we　were　back　to　the　sticky　question　of　where　in　blazes　he'd　gotten　to。　If　he'd　left　the　Icarus　at　Potosi；　voluntarily　or　otherwise；　then　he　was　likely　in　worse　trouble　than　if　he　were　in　here。　In　fact；　as　I　thought　about　it；　I　realized　his　abduction　on　Potosi　might　explain　why　the　Najik　had　identified　the　Icarus　so　quickly　at　Utheno。　Though　that　could　equally　be　the　Potosi　customs　report　catching　up　with　us。
　On　the　other　hand；　whether　Cameron　was　in　here　or　not；　we　still　had　to　figure　out　how　the　stardrive　worked　if　we　were　going　to　pussyfoot　our　way　out　of　the　Patth　net。　Still；　it　would　definitely　be　the　better　part　of　valor　for　me　carefully　to　back　out　of　here　at　this　point　and　postpone　any　other　plans　until　Pax　came　back　with　his　report。
　And　then；　even　as　I　gave　the　light　one　last　sweep　around；　I　heard　a　soft；　distant　sound。　Unlike　the　noise　I'd　heard　while　talking　with　Tera；　though；　this　one　was　very　familiar。　It　was　the　screech　of　a　startled　Kalixiri　ferret；　the　kind　of　verbal　reaction　that　usually　went　quickly　up　the　tonal　scale　and　then　just　as　quickly　back　down　again。
　Only　this　one　didn't。　It　went　halfway　up　the　scale；　then　abruptly　cut　off。
　And　with　the　sudden　silence　ringing　in　my　ears；　I　stared　into　the　darkness；　feeling　sweat　beading　up　on　my　forehead　and　neck。　There　hadn't　been　even　the　whisper　of　a　trailing　edge　to　that　call；　no　whimper；　no　gasp；　no　sigh。　None　of　the　sounds　that　should　have　e　from　the　last　escaping　bit　of　air　in　Pax's　lungs　as　he　collapsed　into　sleep　or　unconsciousness。
　Which　meant　he　hadn't　collapsed　into　sleep　or　unconsciousness。　He　was　dead。
　And　something　in　here　had　killed　him。
　I　looked　back　toward　the　access　hole；　the　movement　of　my　head　sending　droplets　of　sweat　flying　off　my　face　to　drift　their　way　to　oblivion　among　the　maze　of　circuitry。　If　Tera　had　heard　that　abbreviated　death　cry；　she　would　be　sticking　her　head　into　view　any　second　now　to　demand　an　explanation。　But　the　seconds　ticked　by；　and　there　was　no　Tera；　and　I　realized　with　decidedly　mixed　feelings　that　I　alone　knew　what　had　just　happened。
　Which　meant　that　the　decision　of　what　to　do　next　was　also　mine　alone。　Probably　just　as　well。　Wiping　the　surface　layer　of　sweat　off　my　forehead　with　my　left　sleeve；　I　eased　the　blocking　wires　out　of　the　way　and　headed　cautiously　in。
　I'd　told　Ixil　and　Tera　that　we　weren't　in　any　particular　hurry　here。　With　Pax's　screech　echoing　through　my　memory；　I　was　even　less　inclined　to　take　unnecessary　chances。　I　kept　it　slow　and　careful；　checking　every　wire　and　conduit　in　my　path；　both　visually　and　with　my　field　sensor；　before　getting　anywhere　near　it。　Before　moving　it　aside　I　also　made　sure　to　trace　along　it　as　best　I　could　through　the　tangle；　trying　to　see　where　it　intersected　the　wall　or　other　ponents　and　making　sure　it　had　enough　slack　for　me　to　safely　push　it　aside　without　straining　anything。　If　it　didn't　have　that　slack；　if　it　even　looked　marginal；　I　changed　course　and　found　another　route。
　It　took　me　nearly　an　hour　to　work　my　way　through　that　first　three　and　a　half　meters；　and　I　was　just　beginning　to　wonder　if　I　was　going　to　be　able　to　do　the　whole　ten　meters　to　the　center　in　one　try　when　I　eased　through　a　gap　in　a　fish…net…style　mesh　and　abruptly　found　myself　in　open　space。
　I　held　on　to　the　mesh　with　one　hand；　balancing　myself　parallel　to　it　in　the　zero　gee；　and　played　my　light　around。　The　space　wasn't　quite　as　empty；　I　could　see　now；　as　it　had　looked　in　that　first　glance。　A　dozen　different　cable　loops　that　had　worked　their　way　through　the　holes　in　the　mesh　were　bobbing　gently　around　the　edges；　looking　like　some　exotic　form　of　seaweed　drifting　in　a　calm　current。　Half　a　dozen　of　the　lighted　displays　I'd　seen　against　the　walls　were　also　at　the　edge　of　the　open　area；　fastened　by　wires　through　the　mesh　and　facing　inward　toward　the　center；　from　one　of　them　a　slender；　articulated　black…and…silver…banded　extension　arm　stretched　right　to　the　point　six　and　a　half　meters　away　from　me　where　the　center　of　the　sphere　should　be。　All　the　display　lights　were　red；　giving　the　area　an　eerie；　blood…tinged　look。　I　moved　my　light　around　the　room　again；　steeling　myself　for　what　would　probably　be　the　very　unpleasant　sight　of　a　dead　ferret。　But　there　was　no　sign　of　his　body。　Apparently；　he　hadn't　made　it　through　the　wire　maze　before　he　died。
　And　then；　abruptly；　I　caught　my　breath；　swinging　my　light　back　toward　the　center　again。　So　intent　was　I　on　looking　for　Pax's　body　that　it　had　only　now　occurred　to　me　that　there　should　have　been　something　else　in　here：　the　resonance　crystal　and　control　board　that　Nicabar　and　Chort　said　a　stardrive　like　this　was　supposed　to　e　equipped　with。
　Unfortunately；　this　one　wasn't。
　Carefully；　I　ran　my　light　over　every　square　centimeter　of　the　place；　a　tight　knot　twisting　like　a　case…hardened　drill　bit　into　my　stomach。　I'd　pinned　a　lot　on　Tera's　assumption　that　the　Icarus　concealed　an　alien　stardrive；　but　not　until　that　moment　did　I　realize　just　how　much　pinning　I　had　actually　done。　If　we　couldn't　get　this　thing　to　jump　us　past　the　Patth　net；　then　we'd　had　it；　pure　and　simple。　I　remembered　Shawn's　question　on　that　point；　and　how　glibly　I'd　brushed　him　off　with　the　suggestion　that　we　would　be　no　worse　off　if　Cameron's　archaeologists　had　been　wrong。
　But　I'd　been　the　one　who'd　been　wrong。　All　the　work　we'd　done　had　indeed　been　for　nothing；　just　as　Shawn　had　warned。　Worse；　my　brilliant　scheme　had　cost　us　precious　time；　a　loss　I　realized　now　we　were　going　to　sorely　regret。　Not　only　had　the　Patth　been　given　the　opportunity　to　consolidate　and　perhaps　reconfigure　their　hunt　for　us；　but　the　lost　days　had　let　Shawn's　medical　condition　deteriorate　to　the　point　where　there　were　probably　no　more　than　three　or　four　planets　we　could　reach　in　time　to　get　him　the　borandis　he　would　soon　be　needing。　And　to　top　it　off；　if　the　Patth　had　guessed　we　had　had　to　go　to　ground　for　repairs　or　recalibration　after　the　Utheno　attack；　then　they　would　be　concentrating　everything　they　had　on　this　region。　The　region　that；　sooner　or　later；　we　were　going　to　have　to　pop　up　into。
　On　the　other　hand；　if　this　electrician's　nightmare　wasn't　a　stardrive；　what　the　hell　would　the　Patth　want　with　it　anyway？　A　possibly　reassuring　thought；　but　not；　I　realized　immediately；　nearly　as　reassuring　as　it　might　have　been。　The　Icarus　could　still　be　the　massive　alien　stardrive　Cameron's　people　suspected；　only　with　the　vital　crystal　either　removed　or　crumbled　into　dust。　That　would　put　us　in　the　depressing　position　of　having　something　that　was　totally　useless　to　us；　yet　was　still　worth　killing　us　to　get。
　Unless。。。
　I　played　the　light　around　again。　If　it　was　merely　a　matter　of　finding　the　right　kind　of　crystal；　that　was　the　kind　of　miracle　we　still　had　an　outside　chance　of　pulling　off。　I　doubted　such　a　rock　would　be　an　off…the…shelf　item　these　days；　but　if　I　could　get　a　message　to　Uncle　Arthur；　he　might　be　able　to　dig　one　up　from　somewhere　and　get　it　to　us。
　I　let　go　of　the　mesh；　hovering　in　midair　as　I　wiped　some　more　sweat　from　my　face。　And　as　I　did　so；　I　suddenly　heard　a　sound　like　two　pieces　of　metal　scratching　together。　The　same　sound；　I　realized；　that　I'd　heard　while　sitting　out　in　the　big　sphere　with　Tera。
　Only　this　time　it　was　ing　from　somewhere　nearby。
　I　swung　my　light　around；　hoping　to　catch　a　glimpse　of　moving　machinery。　But　the　sound　had　stopped　before　I　could　get　the　light　more　than　a　fraction　of　the　way　around；　despite　the　fact　that　I'd　whipped　my　arm　fast　enough　to　send　the　rest　of　my　body　into　a　slow　tumble。　Cursing　under　my　breath；　I　reached　back　out　for　the　mesh。
　My　fingers　closed　on　thin　air。　The　mesh　was　out　of　my　reach。
　I　tried　again；　swinging　my　body　awkwardly　over　as　I　tried　to　get