Page 74 of Seven Oars
Rosamma hadn’t considered what it took to keep this place afloat, which only added to the host of anxieties she already harbored. They were always one breakdown away from open space.
Phex gestured indifferently.“This place is a heap, and Thilza doesn’t like to work. Esseh and Keerym beat him to get him going, and the Striker threatened to take away his pipe. Thilza wasn’t happy.”
“This is all… crazy.”
Phex nodded in agreement.
It was novel and slightly off-kilter to talk to him like this, to have a conversation where they shared opinions and had a connection. They weren’t friends, but the balance had shifted more toward them being equals.
“There was a bigger issue they talked about,” he said.
“With the station?”
“Yes. It’s Tutti.” Phex screwed up his face as he said the robot’s moniker.“It didn’t alert them about the pressure leak.”
“Was she supposed to?”
He paused and considered Rosamma’s question.“Why are you referring to that thing as she?”
“Oh. Well.” Rosamma got flustered and then laughed.“They tried so hard to make it look female, I guess it earned the distinction.”
Catching Gro’s censoring look, Rosamma sobered up.
The women were all staring at her and Phex. The optics of the two of them, sitting together, laughing, must be jarring to the group.
Rosamma ducked her head, a little ashamed.
Phex remained oblivious to the impression they were giving.“Tutti’s part of the station. She is a component of its ecosystem. They can’t disable her.”
That was news to Rosamma.“They can’t?”
“No. And from what I heard, the pirates don’t like it. The thing is a pest.”
“I’m glad the pirates and I think alike,” Rosamma mused.
“It has its uses, like monitoring the station’s health. Except this time, it didn’t. Which means the system is beginning to fail, and there’s no patching it up with the tools they have.”
Rosamma chewed the inside of her cheek.“How long does the station have?”
“The Striker said it wasn’t critical yet, but they have to make plans.”
Rosamma scooted closer.“What’s stopping the pirates from flying off and leaving us behind?”
The idea of getting stranded on a failing space station was unappealing, but if the pirates removed themselves from that equation, it wouldn’t be so bad. The women and Phex could work with that.
“They have two ships docked to the station. But those pods are small attack crafts,” Phex explained. “Not designed for long flights. I don’t know where they got them, but they shouldn’t be stuck to the side of the station this long, unprotected in open space. Those crafts need routine maintenance.”
“Don’t the pirates know that?”
“They do. They have no choice.”
“But they still have our cruiser.”
“It’s been damaged, but it can be repaired. Thilza is working on it. So he claims.”
“Why wouldn’t they just leave?” she cried with feeling.
“Because they have nowhere to go, Rosamma.”
