'Santerene Orbit, Mambrino ten out. Commencing final approach.'
'You're cleared to lock two, Mambrino. Local beacons are burning.'
'Understand cleared to lock two.'
From there the approach was routine, and the needle ship kissed into the cradles with hardly a thump. I managed to avoid releasing the sigh I felt as I unstrapped and then sat up.
'Smooth, captain,' offered Berya.
'Thank you. I'd hoped it would be, but you never know.'
'No, ser, you don't,' added Souphan with a grin, one of relief.
'You get to greet the station commander or the maintenance officer, captain,' Berya reminded me gently as I eased myself erect in the null grav. 'We just take care of cargo and passengers and shipkeeping.' After a pause, she asked, 'Any maintenance problems?'
I had to think, but I'd detected nothing. Was that because I still wasn't sensitive enough to the nuances or because there were none? 'None that I know of
'Wouldn't have thought so. Usually show up after exit, and you brought us out clean.'
How much had been me and how much the Mambrino - that I wasn't certain, but for the moment, it hadn't mattered.
The passengers had all already debarked by the time I'd finished the shutdown and reclaimed my gear. I still had to wait to do the postflight after Souphan ensured the cargo was off-loaded. A golden-skinned muscular woman, easily a head taller than I, waited by the upper passenger locks.
She wore the golden Web collar pin, unlike the commander of OE Station. 'Captain Tyndel, I'm Krigisa.'
I inclined my head. 'Commander, I'm pleased to meet you.' And most happy to be here to see you.
'This one of your first runs?'
'My very first, actually.'
'How was it?'
'Smooth. My second let me know, politely, that not all future runs will be that smooth.'
'Some of that is the jockey ... but some is not.' She gestured. 'After you finish your postflight, I'd appreciate it if you would join me for a meal - whatever you like, since I've no idea where your internal clock is set.'
'I'd be happy ... and dinner would taste good.'
The invitation was a pleasantry to cover a debriefing, a command pleasantry, but far more courteous than a standard debrief.
Unloading took the maintenance crew nearly two hours, and I reflected that Fersonne and I could have cut a third or more off that time without straining. Finally, it was complete, and I finished the postflight, finding nothing the matter despite a concerted effort to ferret out anything.
Souphan and Berya were waiting by the lock.
'We'll be returning in twenty hours, station objective,' announced the second.
'Cargo?' I had to wonder what there was of value to return to earth.
'Eight passengers, and a bunch of biological samples, plus some nanotemplate equipment too complicated to repair or rebuild out here.'
All that made a sort of sense, and I nodded. 'See you in ... what... seventeen hours.'
Berya nodded. I let them precede me, and we parted ways on the second deck.
The table in the commander's dining quarters was already set, its elegance muted by the null gravity adaptations, including squeeze bottles.
Krigisa - obviously linked to the station's sensors - opened the hatch herself and beckoned me to enter. 'I took the liberty of having Arleen tea for you ... and Dorchan lemon chicken ...'
My smile was rueful. 'Does all of Rykasha know my tastes?'
'No. I'm the only station commander who does.' She gestured to the table.
I used the sticktites to ensure I didn't drift away, but waited until she lifted her own squeeze bottle before drinking.
'You know needle pilots are rare ...' began Krigisa.
Just how rare struck me then. The Authority was more willing to risk a crew and a ship and a cargo than to place a second senior needle pilot on the Mambrino. Yet Krigisa was or had been a needle jockey. 'You were one of the first?'
'Not the very first ...' She smiled ironically.
'And you're here to bring back ships that somehow make exits with injured or incapacitated pilots.' I frowned. 'Berya is probably better than most seconds in handling a needle in real space.'
'You're right in both cases.'
'How often?'
'Not too often.' Commander Krigisa smiled. 'What do you need to know?' I took another sip of the Arleen.
'I'd like you to describe overspace to me - the way you saw it.'
I started with the green-based purple backdrop, the downhill gradient, the distant beacons, and went on from there, including the lazy black sun and lilac veils. '... and then I retwisted the untwistable, and we popped out.' I shrugged.
'I think I could have waited a shade longer, but...'
'It's better not to wait too long,' she observed. 'What were your gee meter readings?'
'Fourteen to twenty-three.'
'That is low.' She nodded. 'Who was your principal ship instructor?'
'Captain Erelya.'
'She's one of the best. How did you find the Mambrino?'
'We're a good fit' That was the way I felt. The gentle questions continued.
'Did you have any trouble distinguishing the beacon IDs ...'
'... evasive tactics you used ...'
'... how far when you folded the nets ...'
Abruptly, she looked straight at me. 'I think I've asked enough. You'll be a Web jockey for a long time. We should eat, because you'll need some rest before you turn around. That's the downside of Santerene. Nowhere planetside to go. I must spend half my time in the high-gee capsule. Part of it even has a console for me.' Krigisa laughed.
I hadn't thought about that, and had to wonder how many other things I'd discover over the years and insertions ahead. But I did begin to enjoy the chicken.
69
Science cannot be 'true' in the absolute sense, and that is why a society based on science alone cannot survive, for the people require absolute truths. Symbolic uncertainty is the downfall of civilization.
Cerrelle was waiting when I got off the downshuttle at Runswi. She was sitting on a bench inside the operations building, out of the late-winter sleet that rattled against the windows. For me four days had gone by, personal objective, and slightly more than a season had passed on earth.
'Tyndel' The way she said my name and the smile warmed me. She'd cut her hair short, not that it had been long before, and, even in the forgiving late-day gloom, she was pale.
'Are you all right?'
'Now. Thesalle isn't for everyone.' Her voice was uneven.
I winced inside. If strong-minded Cerrelle had been shaken by Thesalle, the planet clearly wasn't for everyone.
'Are you still interested in seeing me?'
'What?' Cerrelle ... as direct as ever ... as you're barely off the magshuttle.
'You're a needle jockey - one of the elite. I'm a mid-ranking troubleshooter and baby-sitter for the Authority. I'll never be more.'
'You're also the most honest person I've ever met, and I need you and that.' I held out my hands.
She didn't move, but my words raised a ragged grin. 'At least you put me before the honesty.'
'You need an electrocart. Can you eat?' I paused and studied her, wondering what had happened to her. You need to eat.'
'I do, but my appetite isn't what it should be. I wasn't sure I'd have time to eat, but the shuttle was late.'