possibility. But if they were successful, if they somehow managed to take back the planet... could the Praetari come and go as they pleased, then? With no need for freighter trips by corrupt men like Bruno?
Binny dropped her rag into the bucket with a plunk . Okay, that's good enough for now. Time to clean the engineering bay."
The hum and vibration of machinery slowly disappeared as Binny led her across the base to the wide room they'd seen before, with the messy piles of metal and electronics. Two men crouched among one pile, sifting through the parts. They leaned low, examining each piece carefully. Half the parts looked familiar to Mira, scrap parts from one model of electroid or another. Behind them, on a workbench, an array of half-assembled pieces laid in a row: four arms, one torso, various sizes of legs. At a glance Mira knew half of them were improperly assembled.
"We sweep in here," Binny said, shoving a broom into Mira's hands. "The sand gets everywhere . It rains down when the ceiling hatch opens for aircraft. It never stops, there's always more!"
Mira eyed the hatch in the ceiling, round and split down the middle with a seam. The hangar doors were all closed now. She wondered if Farrow had told the truth about them.
"Sweep it as best as you can into piles, which we'll clean after," Binny instructed. She bent her head to the task, moving the too-tall-for-her broom with both hands.
Mira copied as best she could, brushing the sand across the floor. It was slow work because every time the pile of electroid parts shifted it kicked up fresh sand, dirtying the part of the floor she'd already swept. But it was mindless work, and Mira allowed her thoughts to drift to her daughters.
Some time later the two engineers began arguing. Binny kept her head down, but Mira tried listening in. They gestured wildly at one another, speaking in low tones. Eventually one of them tossed an electroid arm across the workbench and they both left the room, arguing.
"They do that a lot," Binny said. "They're not very smart, not when it comes to machinery. They can't even repair the turbine."
Mira eyed the workbench while Binny chatted away. One of the electroid legs looked wrong, somehow. But she couldn't be certain from across the room.
"They left to get supper. We'll get ours when we're done sweeping. I like to go later, when everyone else is done eating. Maggy the cook gives me extra food because I'm a growing girl, but not when the others are around, 'cause they'd get jealous."
They were all alone in the room. How long would the engineers be gone? She remembered Farrow's warning: if Spider saw you working on the electroids he'd probably kill you where you stood . But she also remembered telling her daughters to be brave, that she'd meet them on the Oasis station. If Mira wasn't brave, how could her daughters be?
I need to prove my worth. And I'm not worth much sweeping the floor.
She set her broom against the wall and approached the workbench, picking up the first electroid part she saw.
"Every third day Maggy makes soup," Binny continued. "It's thin, but filling, with carrots and celery from the synthetic garden. We don't have a lot of food, and Farrow is worried that if our size grows beyond--HEY!" Binny's broom clattered to the floor. "What are you doing? Get away from there!"
Mira knew what the problem was. Electroids varied by model depending on how old they were. The modifications were usually subtle, but occasionally something important changed, like the number of wires in a connector between parts. The factory workers had to stay late whenever a model changed, spending extra time learning the differences.
But someone untrained wouldn't know enough to tell the difference between models. The electroid arm in Mira's hands was a combination of seven parts from three different electroid models. Which is why the wiring connector won't fit , she thought with a grimace, and why the joint doesn't bend all the way.
Binny
Binny dropped her rag into the bucket with a plunk . Okay, that's good enough for now. Time to clean the engineering bay."
The hum and vibration of machinery slowly disappeared as Binny led her across the base to the wide room they'd seen before, with the messy piles of metal and electronics. Two men crouched among one pile, sifting through the parts. They leaned low, examining each piece carefully. Half the parts looked familiar to Mira, scrap parts from one model of electroid or another. Behind them, on a workbench, an array of half-assembled pieces laid in a row: four arms, one torso, various sizes of legs. At a glance Mira knew half of them were improperly assembled.
"We sweep in here," Binny said, shoving a broom into Mira's hands. "The sand gets everywhere . It rains down when the ceiling hatch opens for aircraft. It never stops, there's always more!"
Mira eyed the hatch in the ceiling, round and split down the middle with a seam. The hangar doors were all closed now. She wondered if Farrow had told the truth about them.
"Sweep it as best as you can into piles, which we'll clean after," Binny instructed. She bent her head to the task, moving the too-tall-for-her broom with both hands.
Mira copied as best she could, brushing the sand across the floor. It was slow work because every time the pile of electroid parts shifted it kicked up fresh sand, dirtying the part of the floor she'd already swept. But it was mindless work, and Mira allowed her thoughts to drift to her daughters.
Some time later the two engineers began arguing. Binny kept her head down, but Mira tried listening in. They gestured wildly at one another, speaking in low tones. Eventually one of them tossed an electroid arm across the workbench and they both left the room, arguing.
"They do that a lot," Binny said. "They're not very smart, not when it comes to machinery. They can't even repair the turbine."
Mira eyed the workbench while Binny chatted away. One of the electroid legs looked wrong, somehow. But she couldn't be certain from across the room.
"They left to get supper. We'll get ours when we're done sweeping. I like to go later, when everyone else is done eating. Maggy the cook gives me extra food because I'm a growing girl, but not when the others are around, 'cause they'd get jealous."
They were all alone in the room. How long would the engineers be gone? She remembered Farrow's warning: if Spider saw you working on the electroids he'd probably kill you where you stood . But she also remembered telling her daughters to be brave, that she'd meet them on the Oasis station. If Mira wasn't brave, how could her daughters be?
I need to prove my worth. And I'm not worth much sweeping the floor.
She set her broom against the wall and approached the workbench, picking up the first electroid part she saw.
"Every third day Maggy makes soup," Binny continued. "It's thin, but filling, with carrots and celery from the synthetic garden. We don't have a lot of food, and Farrow is worried that if our size grows beyond--HEY!" Binny's broom clattered to the floor. "What are you doing? Get away from there!"
Mira knew what the problem was. Electroids varied by model depending on how old they were. The modifications were usually subtle, but occasionally something important changed, like the number of wires in a connector between parts. The factory workers had to stay late whenever a model changed, spending extra time learning the differences.
But someone untrained wouldn't know enough to tell the difference between models. The electroid arm in Mira's hands was a combination of seven parts from three different electroid models. Which is why the wiring connector won't fit , she thought with a grimace, and why the joint doesn't bend all the way.
Binny
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