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It took two days of hard work but we got that shuttle gutted. We had some tools at our disposal, all cadged from the mining rig: torch, arc welder, hover pallet, block and tackle. The first cut away pieces of the shuttle, the last lifted them onto the pallet, at times holding them upright as I cut them free. And now lifting them off the pallet to the cut pile. I hand-over-handed the chain, swung the first hunk of scrap free, and lowered it to the top of the pile. The cavern had no shortage of loose rocks to shim the metal level, and rather like my father stacking wood to dry, I made certain the pile was stable and in no danger of sliding onto passersby. A useless nicety, I had to admit, since we weren’t likely to come back for the scrap and anyone arriving after us wouldn’t give a good Goddamn, but still. I got the last piece off-loaded and stowed the tools, job finally done. | It took two days of hard work but we got that shuttle gutted. We had some tools at our disposal, all cadged from the mining rig: torch, arc welder, hover pallet, block and tackle. The first cut away pieces of the shuttle, the last lifted them onto the pallet, at times holding them upright as I cut them free. And now lifting them off the pallet to the cut pile. I hand-over-handed the chain, swung the first hunk of scrap free, and lowered it to the top of the pile. The cavern had no shortage of loose rocks to shim the metal level, and rather like my father stacking wood to dry, I made certain the pile was stable and in no danger of sliding onto passersby. A useless nicety, I had to admit, since we weren’t likely to come back for the scrap and anyone arriving after us wouldn’t give a good Goddamn, but still. I got the last piece off-loaded and stowed the tools, job finally done. | ||
| − | The menfolk had turned in hours ago and out of habit and concern I sought out Joshua before grabbing some shut-eye. He’d taken to sleeping in the cavern instead of retiring on the rig or in the unaltered shuttle, keeping himself from the others. Counting the days since we’d left the | + | The menfolk had turned in hours ago and out of habit and concern I sought out Joshua before grabbing some shut-eye. He’d taken to sleeping in the cavern instead of retiring on the rig or in the unaltered shuttle, keeping himself from the others. Counting the days since we’d left the Gift, I knew he had to be feeling the lack of his meds. Not entirely sure what I could do without a dose in my pocket, I thought bitterly of the extra I’d stashed in my quarters. The ''Gift'' was impounded four worlds away on Londinium and my stash was as good as in the sun for all I could get my hands on it. Such were my thoughts as I searched out Joshua. If he stayed true to form, he’d be in the section of cavern where there was a sand deposit. It wasn’t much to look at but it was softer to sleep on than the hard rock of the floor and as I rounded a group of stalagmites, I shone my torch in a sweeping arc looking for his blankets. |
“Joshua?” I called, keeping my voice low. Sound carried here, and I was grateful for the acoustic cover of the stalagmites. “You awake?” | “Joshua?” I called, keeping my voice low. Sound carried here, and I was grateful for the acoustic cover of the stalagmites. “You awake?” | ||
