Got it. Jack set off, his knees feeling a little wobbly.
The gunfire continued to slow down, and by the time they reached the panel it had stopped entirely. Be careful as you open it, Draycos warned. They're undoubtedly listening now front above, hoping to hear what we might be doing.
In that case, let's just hang here a minute, Jack suggested. Sooner or later, they're bound to start making noise again.
Draycos seemed to think about that, and Jack could sense his uneasiness with the situation. They were still very much exposed out here, and his warrior's instincts were probably screaming at him to get them under better cover. Trust me, Jack said.
Very well, Draycos said reluctantly. But if I hear anyone approaching—
He broke off as a soft metallic thud came from somewhere above and forward of their position. Sounds like one of the mercenaries is coming in to look for our bullet-riddled bodies, Jack said, getting a grip on the panel's handles. That's our cue.
He paused, his hands still on the handles, listening hard. Through the mesh he could now see the faint glow of a flashlight peeking through the mesh far above them. The footsteps started up, paused, then started up again, settling into a rhythm.
And with perfect timing, Jack popped the panel exactly as one of the footsteps sent its covering echo through the tween gap.
A minute later, they were through the doorway. Jack got a grip on the edge of the panel and pulled it back into place, again timing the event to coincide with the distant traveler's footsteps. Okay, he said, taking a deep breath. I think we're in.
I believe you're right, Draycos agreed. Well done, Jack.
Years of practice, Jack assured him. With some of the crazy jobs Uncle Virgil had me pull, I had to raise running and hiding to a fine art.
He looked around. The room they were in was long and narrow, with a ten-foot-tall, box-shaped cabinet on each of the fore and aft bulkheads. Control displays on each winked with colored status lights. Connecting the cabinets to the walls and ceiling were more stripe/spot-marked pipes. Another fire control room? he hazarded.
No, this is one of the ship's water-reclamation plants, Draycos said.
Really, Jack said, looking at the cabinets with new interest. The crew drinks the stuff that comes out of these, do they?
From these and nine other plants throughout the ship, Draycos said. Why?
Because there are two ways to keep a gun from going off, Jack said. Wreck the gun, or stop the person from pulling the trigger.
Are you suggesting we poison them? The entire crew?
We don't have to kill them, Jack said hastily. There had been an unpleasant tone in the K'da's mental voice just then. I was thinking we could find a way to knock them out. Or else make them so sick they can't function.
Draycos was silent a moment. We would need to sabotage all ten of the purifiers, he pointed out. And we would have to do all ten simultaneously. Otherwise, once people started getting sick they'd realize something was wrong and guard the rest of the purifiers.
True, Jack said. We'd also have to find something that would affect humans, Brummgas, and Valahgua.
And we'd need to deal with the emergency bottled water, as well, Draycos continued. Those supplies are, unfortunately, scattered throughout the ship.
Which means we'd have to hit them hard and fast, Jack said slowly, trying to think. Uncle Virgil had taught him a fair amount about incapacitating drugs and chemicals. Surely he could come up with something he could make up from stuff already aboard ship.
The big question was whether he could do it in time.
In time? Draycos asked.
We've got less than six days until we hit Point Three, remember? Jack said. At that point, the Brummgas scream for help and Frost throws everything he's got at us.
What if we destroy the radios? Draycos suggested. That might at least buy us another few hours.
Not worth the risks, Jack said. Besides, even if we could take out all the actual radios, anyone with a comm clip will be able to punch a message across the kind of distance we're talking about.
He grimaced. Besides, whatever was going on with the Essenay just before we went on ECHO, there's a good chance Neverlin and Frost already know we're here. They'll be over as soon as we all come off ECHO.
For a moment Draycos was silent. Jack tried to catch some of the K'da's thoughts, but they flashed by too subtly and too quickly. Then we'll just have to make do with the time we have, he said.
Right, Jack agreed. Are there any other secret ways of getting around this ship besides the tween gap?
There are the ventilation ducts, Draycos reminded him.
I meant for me, Jack said. Unfortunately, my body doesn't compress nearly as well as yours and Taneem's do. He shook his head. I still can't believe she was able to get around the Advocatus Diaboli that way. What in the world did its designers think they were doing, making ducts that big?
Actually, oversized ducts are a fairly standard large-ship design, according to the technical material I read in the Essenay's encyclopedia, Draycos said. If there's a hull breach, you want to be able to deliver massive quantities of air to the affected area, thereby giving anyone trapped there a chance to escape or put on an emergency vac suit. A ship the size of the Advocatus Diaboli usually has plenty of air reserves available for such a purpose.
He flicked his tail against Jack's leg. I'm surprised Virgil Morgan never taught you about that.
I'm not, Jack said sourly. Uncle Virgil was strictly about practical stuff, and I outgrew ventilation ducts when I hit seven.
Of course, Draycos said. My apologies for bringing up an unpleasant subject.
Don't worry about it, Jack assured him, shifting his thoughts firmly away from childhood memories. Okay, we've got six days. Let's start by taking an inventory of what we've got to work with.
CHAPTER 17
For Alison, the next six days went by smoothly and quietly. As near as she could tell, the time had gone equally smoothly for everyone else aboard the Advocatus Diaboli.
Neverlin and Frost met several times, discussing the final details of their plan. Sneaking through the vents, Taneem had managed to get close enough to eavesdrop on one of those talks.