The Line of the Sol Empress

Chapter 27.2

"Defense system engaged." The voice said.

After a few moments, a shower of orange streaks shot out from the cannons. One by one, the missiles disintegrated in bright flashes.

Gabriel turned toward Hope and grinned. "See? Like I told you, no problem."

Hope's eyes shot wide open as she pointed at the magnified forward visual display. "Then what is that Commonwealth Frigate straight ahead?"

The grin dropped from Gabriel's face. "Umm, that's a problem."

The warship loomed ahead, having come around the planet from the opposite direction. Racing toward each other, the distance between the ships closed fast. Gabriel leaned forward and adjusted the Corsair's course.

"What are you doing, Gab?" Hope cried out. "We're flying right at it!"

"Just a little game of chicken. When they flinch, we will pass by so fast they won't be able to target us." He raised his eyes up. "Ship AI, load two stingers and fire at closest approach. Target the fusion thrusters."

"Missiles ready."

Hope shook her head. "What is it with you and daredevil stunts?"

He shrugged. "It's a gift. Better hang on. Time to flyby?"

"Twenty-four seconds," the AI responded.

He grinned. "They're probably wondering what we are doing."

"So am I," Hope muttered, reestablishing her tight grip on the chair arms.

At the very last moment, Gabriel pulled the control yoke back, racing over the Frigate. Coming at each other at so high a relative velocity, the battle was over in a second. They passed through a storm of orange plasma bolts, but a few found their mark. Three rapid explosions shook the Corsair, pitching it down, and throwing Hope and Gabriel forward against the seat restraints. Red lights flashed on the control panel as Gabriel struggled to regain stable flight.

"Status!" he yelled.

The AI reported in an even voice. "Defense pulse cannons offline. Long-range com offline. Quantum drive offline. Hull breech in aft storage."

Gabriel turned to his sister. "Fixing a quantum drive is your thing, Hope. Get to it."

"On it." Hope threw off her restraints and rushed off the bridge. After climbing down a ladder, she came to the power room. Two cylindrical fusion reactors rumbled within an arm's reach to the left and right. A rounded gray box, about a meter in each dimension, at one end of the cramped room enclosed the quantum drive. A maze of tubes and cables connected the drive to other systems.

Hope studied the monitoring panel mounted above the quantum drive. The reactors are operating at full output. That's good, but the excess vibrations are a concern — might be a mag field alignment issue. The quantum drive tripped off, probably from a power surge. The drive cooling system is completely down. That could be the biggest problem.

Gabriel's voice came over the intercom. "Oh, just so you know, that Frigate launched four missiles after we passed. You have, umm, nineteen minutes now to get the quantum drive up before we turn into space trash. But no pressure."

"Right," Hope grumbled. She spun around, and a panic swept over her nonetheless, sending queazy tingles all the way to her fingertips. "Where are the tools and spare parts?" she yelled.

"Hell if I know." Gabriel answered over the intercom.

The ship AI responded. "The service kit is located forward behind the access ladder."

Spinning around, Hope blew out a cleansing breath. "Okay, I see it."

Rummaging through the plas-steel box, she selected a few tools and returned to the quantum drive. She sat on the floor with her legs crossed while opening the drive power fuse box. That's the issue. Not only tripped the fuse, but fried it.

She returned to the service kit and rummaged through it. An anger born of frustration rose in her mind and burst from her lips. "Why the hell didn't they include spare fuses?"

Gabriel said over the intercom. "Is there a problem, Hope?"

"No problem," she responded, then cringed at her word choice. Gab probably has that disgusting grin on his face right now. "I'm going to have to bypass the drive power fuse. So be careful not to push it too hard."

Once Hope reconnected the power, she said, "Ship AI, begin quantum drive diagnostics and warm up."

The AI replied, "Diagnostics and warm up underway."

Hope said, "Ship AI, do you have a name?"

"I am the ship AI."

"I see. Well I can't call you Sai, since that name is already taken."

"Input not understood."

"Never mind."

An examination of the drive cooling system brought more frustration. Coolant leaked from several points, creating a green pool on the floor. Hope kneeled in the pool to tighten several pipe joints and apply a sealant to the pump packing.

Hope called out, "Bypass all coolant system shutdowns and restart." She blew out a sigh of relief as the system purred to life and the status board lit up, although with several blinking red numbers.

Again, she called out. "Ship AI, what is the quantum drive status?"

"Diagnostics incomplete. Warm-up incomplete. Estimated time until completion is twenty-seven minutes."

Oh, great...

Gabriel said over the intercom. "How is it going, Hope? Only one minute until certain doom."

Hope blew out a breath. "Here's how it is, Gab. We are going to have to bootstrap the drive. And I didn't have enough time to recharge the cooling system. We will only be able to operate the drive for ten minutes, max."

"That will be enough for now. Tell me when you are ready."

"Now is a good time." Hope turned her head up. "Ship AI, bootstrap the quantum drive, bypass all safety interlocks."

The AI said in an even voice. "Be advised of the risks--"

"Yes, I know." She rolled her eyes. "Singularity implosion, instant death, and a bad hair day. Just do it!"