Roboteer by Alex Lamb Page A

from the cluster of flaring red lights on the board. A quick check of his active SAP stable confirmed his suspicion. His last pipe cleaner, made nervous by the cooling welds around it, had failed to return home when its survey was complete. The heat of the pipe was still above its default safety threshold, thus it couldn’t retrace its steps without external instructions from Will. So, like all dim-witted machines, it had sat there quietly and waited for new orders. Thus, when Rachel started injecting a cool test plasma into the pipes, the presence of the cleaner had come up looking like a critical blockage, hence the alarms.
    Will grabbed hold of the cleaner’s mind and sent it scurrying back to its service alcove as fast as it could go. Before it got there, Ira’s command icon appeared in the control room, denoting his presence in the system. It took the captain just seconds to spot what was going on.
    ‘Monet!’ he roared.
    The sound was decidedly real, and close by. Will turned back to the real world to see the captain’s beet-coloured face glaring at him over the muscle-tank.
    Ira thrust his data visor up over his head. ‘What in fuck’s name were you doing unplugged while one of your repair robots was still active? And why do I find Ms Bock here running your tests for you? Do you know what duty shift means, Mr Monet?’
    ‘It’s my fault, sir,’ said Rachel. ‘I told him to unplug. And I was the one who injected plasma into the pipe while there was still a robot inside.’
    ‘Quiet!’ Ira ordered and turned his attention back to Will. ‘What were you thinking? Do you have any idea what would’ve happened if we’d started up the pulse guns with that thing still stuck in there?’
    And with sickly clarity, Will did. An antimatter bullet colliding with the cleaner would blow a hole in the hull large enough to drive a macrodozer through. In all probability, they wouldn’t have time to realise their mistake before they died.
    ‘In case you hadn’t noticed, Monet, this ship only has six people on it,’ the captain snarled. ‘That means everyone has to pull their weight. And if you’re going to make slack-ass mistakes like disconnecting on the job, I might as well leave you here with the fucking Andrewsians. Because I’d rather have Rachel and Hugo cover your job around the clock till the end of the mission than leave my ship in the hands of a second-rate shift-dodger. Do you understand me?’
    ‘Yes, sir,’ said Will, his face burning.
    ‘And I don’t care if someone told you that you could unplug or not,’ he added, with a furious glance in Rachel’s direction. ‘Your duties on this ship are outlined very clearly in your transfer contract. Or do you need a refresher course in Fleet discipline?’
    ‘No, sir.’
    ‘From now on, I want to see that noodle on your neck at all times, in-tank or out, unless I explicitly give you permission to take it off.’
    Will pressed his lips together hard. Ira might as well chain him to his bunk. What he needed was more rest, not less.
    ‘Do you get me?’ Ira demanded.
    ‘Yes, sir,’ said Will stiffly.
    ‘Then finish those repairs. I want them double-checked, with a full report on my stack before we leave system.’
    Ira shoved himself away towards the privacy room. With a grimace of frustration, Will re-immersed himself in the repair node and began running the last batch of tests all over again.
    4.3: IRA
    Ira dragged himself through the hatch, cursing. He was furious, but mostly with himself. He should have pushed back harder on Bryant about the new roboteer. It was clear Will couldn’t take the pace. He had been deadly serious when he’d suggested leaving Will behind. Having no roboteer on the ship was better than risking a clumsy one. And St Andrews was desperate for technical help. He had half a mind to call the defence minister back and offer him a deal, then and there.
    The tiny colony was one of Galatea’s three remaining allies. The only