either
Canada Station Three or Luna Station, they kept the heat in the bay at minimum.
Justine needed to wear a thick sweater over her PERSuit harness to keep from
freezing, and this severely hampered the sensors. Unfortunately, the harness
was tailored to fit snugly, and wouldn’t fit on top of a sweater or jacket.
Not having the harness on made her job navigating through
the maze of containers something of a nightmare, especially when she had to
cart drinks and snacks from the kitchenette one floor above to the soldiers
guarding the insulated crate of Kinemet at the back of the cargo hold.
It was ridiculous to think only someone with security
clearance was permitted to serve the guards, but she was determined to make the
best of it.
The eight uniformed men took their jobs extremely seriously.
They were a very tight-lipped crew, and when they were on duty, they held their
post in complete silence. At all times, two of them stood guard on either side
of the container holding the Kinemet. They had M72 ion pulse rifles at the
ready. A third and fourth soldier walked the perimeter of the cargo bay. Every three
hours, they would relieve each other in rotating shifts.
When she first arrived in the cargo bay and was introduced
to the squad members, they were very formal and would only address her as Major
Turner, even after she repeated to them, “Just call me Justine.”
Once they were in space, Justine asked them for their
orders, and they stared at her in frozen terror. Here was a retired NASA major fetching
drinks for them.
“Guys,” she had said, “if you don’t tell me what you want,
it’s going to be a very thirsty trip.”
Having grown accustomed to putting people at ease with her
former celebrity, Justine cracked a few jokes and made sure to ask them
questions about their family back home in order to get to know them. After a
few hours they relaxed around her, though they all remained very respectful and
polite.
They would respond to direct questions from Justine, but the
only one who went out of his way to engage in conversation with her was the
squad leader, Lieutenant John Jeffries. He was quite young—all the soldiers
were—and Justine could tell he was trying to set an example for the men under his
command. Soon, however, he truly warmed to Justine and there were moments she
was certain he forgot her former status as a major.
When the soldiers were off shift they snoozed, read books or
watched vids on their holoslates. Lieutenant Jeffries had brought an
old-fashioned crib board and challenged Justine to a game when he wasn’t on
duty. It killed the time.
Ordinarily, with her optilink sensor, she was unable to
discern standard print on paper or cardboard. When the optilink was hooked to the
PERSuit harness, however, she could interpret changes in color and translate
the two-dimensional images to her mind.
The only problem was, while she played the game, she had to
take off her sweater, so she usually had to stop after a few games before she
got too cold.
During Lieutenant Jeffries’ second stint off-duty, they
played for about an hour. Justine was up six games to five over the lieutenant,
who had won most of their previous matches. She was on a winning streak, and
didn’t want to quit, despite the fact that she was shivering.
Lieutenant Jeffries was five points behind the skunk line,
and Justine needed six points to win. She kept her pegging cards, since it was
his first count.
He played his first card. “Three,” he said. “Try to ‘fifteen’
that.”
Justine laid down a ‘three’ of her own. “Six for two.” She
took her points while Lieutenant Jeffries pondered his next play. It was
obvious he had kept his small cards as well in an attempt to avoid being
skunked. He played what Justine assumed was his highest card: a seven.
“Thirteen,” he said.
She dropped her deuce and smiled. “Fifteen for two. Two to
go.”
He hesitated and took a second look at her harness. “You
sure
Canada Station Three or Luna Station, they kept the heat in the bay at minimum.
Justine needed to wear a thick sweater over her PERSuit harness to keep from
freezing, and this severely hampered the sensors. Unfortunately, the harness
was tailored to fit snugly, and wouldn’t fit on top of a sweater or jacket.
Not having the harness on made her job navigating through
the maze of containers something of a nightmare, especially when she had to
cart drinks and snacks from the kitchenette one floor above to the soldiers
guarding the insulated crate of Kinemet at the back of the cargo hold.
It was ridiculous to think only someone with security
clearance was permitted to serve the guards, but she was determined to make the
best of it.
The eight uniformed men took their jobs extremely seriously.
They were a very tight-lipped crew, and when they were on duty, they held their
post in complete silence. At all times, two of them stood guard on either side
of the container holding the Kinemet. They had M72 ion pulse rifles at the
ready. A third and fourth soldier walked the perimeter of the cargo bay. Every three
hours, they would relieve each other in rotating shifts.
When she first arrived in the cargo bay and was introduced
to the squad members, they were very formal and would only address her as Major
Turner, even after she repeated to them, “Just call me Justine.”
Once they were in space, Justine asked them for their
orders, and they stared at her in frozen terror. Here was a retired NASA major fetching
drinks for them.
“Guys,” she had said, “if you don’t tell me what you want,
it’s going to be a very thirsty trip.”
Having grown accustomed to putting people at ease with her
former celebrity, Justine cracked a few jokes and made sure to ask them
questions about their family back home in order to get to know them. After a
few hours they relaxed around her, though they all remained very respectful and
polite.
They would respond to direct questions from Justine, but the
only one who went out of his way to engage in conversation with her was the
squad leader, Lieutenant John Jeffries. He was quite young—all the soldiers
were—and Justine could tell he was trying to set an example for the men under his
command. Soon, however, he truly warmed to Justine and there were moments she
was certain he forgot her former status as a major.
When the soldiers were off shift they snoozed, read books or
watched vids on their holoslates. Lieutenant Jeffries had brought an
old-fashioned crib board and challenged Justine to a game when he wasn’t on
duty. It killed the time.
Ordinarily, with her optilink sensor, she was unable to
discern standard print on paper or cardboard. When the optilink was hooked to the
PERSuit harness, however, she could interpret changes in color and translate
the two-dimensional images to her mind.
The only problem was, while she played the game, she had to
take off her sweater, so she usually had to stop after a few games before she
got too cold.
During Lieutenant Jeffries’ second stint off-duty, they
played for about an hour. Justine was up six games to five over the lieutenant,
who had won most of their previous matches. She was on a winning streak, and
didn’t want to quit, despite the fact that she was shivering.
Lieutenant Jeffries was five points behind the skunk line,
and Justine needed six points to win. She kept her pegging cards, since it was
his first count.
He played his first card. “Three,” he said. “Try to ‘fifteen’
that.”
Justine laid down a ‘three’ of her own. “Six for two.” She
took her points while Lieutenant Jeffries pondered his next play. It was
obvious he had kept his small cards as well in an attempt to avoid being
skunked. He played what Justine assumed was his highest card: a seven.
“Thirteen,” he said.
She dropped her deuce and smiled. “Fifteen for two. Two to
go.”
He hesitated and took a second look at her harness. “You
sure
Similar Books
