useful.
Construction Manager Caldwell had done a nice job of allocating tasks. For the first hour or so, Murray’s role was restricted to nudging the position of steelwork lifted in by R-1. She’d had enough time in the neutral buoyancy pool to understand near-zero weight doesn’t mean near-zero inertia. She did okay.
Her troubles started when she had to use tools. It took her nearly a quarter of an hour to get her first nut onto a bolt. She struggled with the gloves. It was painful to watch. When she’d finally got it tightened, I moved over to check it. It needed a finishing twist. So did the next one, and the next, much to Diego’s delight.
“ Looks like my drinks’ll be on you tonight, nearly-nineteen.”
Murray swore viciously and promptly got worse. She dropped her podger, grabbed for it with reflexes conditioned to Earth gravity and missed. It headed in the direction of the main hotel viewport. The Gaffer pushed out and snagged it.
“ Take a breather and calm down,” he said, before passing it back. “And, Diego, concentrate on your own work.” Diego was working well. He and the arm operator had a smooth rhythm going; they made a difficult job look easy.
“ Hey,” I said to Murray, “come over here for a while and watch how I do it.” She did. I explained what I was doing and got her to repeat it. She dropped her wrench again. It was a long day.
Towards the end of the shift, Murray had mastered catching a dropped wrench. She’d done it often enough for her reflexes to adjust to microgravity. She was still struggling to do fine work with her gloves on: I made a mental note to give her a nut and bolt when we went in so she could practice overnight. She was getting better at applying torque, and she was really working at it.
“ Nearly,” I said, tightening off one of her connections.
“ I’m gonna get this right, Peggy. Here, try that.”
“ Nearly, again.”
“ That?”
“ Another nearly.”
I thought she’d lose patience, but she kept at it. As we moved onto our last step of the day she’d all but got the knack. Her last-but-one joint was almost good enough to let through. The rest of us had finished work. Diego and the Gaffer were watching. There was certainly enough torque for it to hold. I paused…considered letting her have it…
“ I’ll check it myself if you don’t hurry up,” said Diego.
I had to call it.
“ Almost, but not quite,” I said. Murray was already putting on the last nut, handling her podger neatly.
“ Here,” said the Gaffer, “let me check that one.” It took a while for him to pull over. “Hey, nice work, girlie.”
“ Yeah?” said Murray. She hung nearby, a little too close.
“ This is good for your first day out.”
“ Good enough?”
The Gaffer gave the nut one last adjustment.
“ Nearly. You’ll get the hang of it tomorrow. Should I take that hundred out of your first week’s pay?”
* *
Murray turned u p early for the next workshift, carrying her gloves and practice bolt. Construction Manager Angela Caldwell was talking to the Gaffer while I checked the lines. Caldwell had her long grey hair tied back and wore a singlet that showed the scars on her arms.
I greeted Murray as she came in. “Keen to get outside again, are you?” I asked. I was pleased. Enthusiasm was natural in a kid her age.
“ Nah, not specially. Wanted to talk to the Gaffer about today’s build.”
The Gaffer heard and turned, one eyebrow raised, breaking off his conversation with Caldwell. Although he and I went through the build guide every day, we didn’t expect input from the rest of the team. Not that it was banned; it just wasn’t traditional.
“ Angela, this is our latest apprentice, Grace Murray,” he said. “Murray, Construction Manager Caldwell. What did you want to talk about?”
Angela Caldwell gave Murray a level, assessing look. They were about the same height. Murray didn’t speak. I hadn’t seen her intimidated before. Diego
Construction Manager Caldwell had done a nice job of allocating tasks. For the first hour or so, Murray’s role was restricted to nudging the position of steelwork lifted in by R-1. She’d had enough time in the neutral buoyancy pool to understand near-zero weight doesn’t mean near-zero inertia. She did okay.
Her troubles started when she had to use tools. It took her nearly a quarter of an hour to get her first nut onto a bolt. She struggled with the gloves. It was painful to watch. When she’d finally got it tightened, I moved over to check it. It needed a finishing twist. So did the next one, and the next, much to Diego’s delight.
“ Looks like my drinks’ll be on you tonight, nearly-nineteen.”
Murray swore viciously and promptly got worse. She dropped her podger, grabbed for it with reflexes conditioned to Earth gravity and missed. It headed in the direction of the main hotel viewport. The Gaffer pushed out and snagged it.
“ Take a breather and calm down,” he said, before passing it back. “And, Diego, concentrate on your own work.” Diego was working well. He and the arm operator had a smooth rhythm going; they made a difficult job look easy.
“ Hey,” I said to Murray, “come over here for a while and watch how I do it.” She did. I explained what I was doing and got her to repeat it. She dropped her wrench again. It was a long day.
Towards the end of the shift, Murray had mastered catching a dropped wrench. She’d done it often enough for her reflexes to adjust to microgravity. She was still struggling to do fine work with her gloves on: I made a mental note to give her a nut and bolt when we went in so she could practice overnight. She was getting better at applying torque, and she was really working at it.
“ Nearly,” I said, tightening off one of her connections.
“ I’m gonna get this right, Peggy. Here, try that.”
“ Nearly, again.”
“ That?”
“ Another nearly.”
I thought she’d lose patience, but she kept at it. As we moved onto our last step of the day she’d all but got the knack. Her last-but-one joint was almost good enough to let through. The rest of us had finished work. Diego and the Gaffer were watching. There was certainly enough torque for it to hold. I paused…considered letting her have it…
“ I’ll check it myself if you don’t hurry up,” said Diego.
I had to call it.
“ Almost, but not quite,” I said. Murray was already putting on the last nut, handling her podger neatly.
“ Here,” said the Gaffer, “let me check that one.” It took a while for him to pull over. “Hey, nice work, girlie.”
“ Yeah?” said Murray. She hung nearby, a little too close.
“ This is good for your first day out.”
“ Good enough?”
The Gaffer gave the nut one last adjustment.
“ Nearly. You’ll get the hang of it tomorrow. Should I take that hundred out of your first week’s pay?”
* *
Murray turned u p early for the next workshift, carrying her gloves and practice bolt. Construction Manager Angela Caldwell was talking to the Gaffer while I checked the lines. Caldwell had her long grey hair tied back and wore a singlet that showed the scars on her arms.
I greeted Murray as she came in. “Keen to get outside again, are you?” I asked. I was pleased. Enthusiasm was natural in a kid her age.
“ Nah, not specially. Wanted to talk to the Gaffer about today’s build.”
The Gaffer heard and turned, one eyebrow raised, breaking off his conversation with Caldwell. Although he and I went through the build guide every day, we didn’t expect input from the rest of the team. Not that it was banned; it just wasn’t traditional.
“ Angela, this is our latest apprentice, Grace Murray,” he said. “Murray, Construction Manager Caldwell. What did you want to talk about?”
Angela Caldwell gave Murray a level, assessing look. They were about the same height. Murray didn’t speak. I hadn’t seen her intimidated before. Diego
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