Looking at the controls for the Buoyant Star, I see things that remind me of those days, of tapping panels in the hopes that it would turn on a broken component, of constantly switching out chips to see if this one would cause the system to magically light up. Of midnight surges in power only for it to fail when most needed. We laughed about those days, but when push came to shove, the Vanora was a disaster and we dumped her.
We don't have that choice with the Buoyant Star. Jade won't leave the sleepers behind and I absolutely won't leave her. So I need to make this hunk of junk work.
I whistle cheerfully as I pry a wire out of a gunk-covered socket and glance over at Jade. I have her cleaning filters with a damp towel, removing loose particles and judging the state of them. Even from here, I can tell they've more than reached the end of their life. They smell moldy and the white filters are a stark gray, but they're what we've got. Luckily Jade hasn't noticed my apprehension. I keep whistling, and all the while, I'm trying to think of answers.
I lied to her when I said the ship was fine. The more I try to do routine maintenance, the more I'm convinced that this old gal is only still operating out of sheer luck. Luck can sometimes work in your favor—the Star might drift on as she is for another year or two, or she might shit the bed tomorrow. There's no way of knowing, but I don't like those odds.
So I made up some bullshit lie about how we're going to shut it all down except for a room or two. That we're saving power. Truth is, I'm going to salvage decent parts from what I can, and I doubt we have more than enough to keep only a room or two going. But what Jade doesn't know won't hurt her, so I keep on whistling a cheerful tune.
We can last a month, I tell myself. We'll pull a few wires from here and there, ensure that the life support systems are running in top shape for at least one part of the ship, and we wait out Kaspar and Mathiras's return. Heck, they might even be back sooner. Luckier things have happened.
We work on through the morning in companionable quiet. Jade occasionally asks me a question, but for the most part, I'm left alone with my own thoughts, which is always dangerous. I'm pretty sure she's thinking about last night—also known as the greatest night of my life—but I worry that she's quiet because she has regrets.
Then, the wire I'm working on pulling out snaps in half, and I have new regrets. "Uh oh."
Jade's immediately at my side. "What's uh oh? What's wrong?"
"It's nothing."
I put a few wires back into place, return the circuit board I'm working on, and get to my feet. The moment I do, Jade is right there, frowning up at me, the dusty rag in her hand. "Do not lie to me, mister. I can read you like a damn book and something's wrong."
"It's not EXTREMELY wrong," I hedge. "Just inconvenient. There was a wire I needed and it snapped." I don't point out that the wire is one that's pretty crucial for the temperature control of the ship. "But there's more of them to be found on the ship. No big deal." I pause, then wonder if there's any way to slide this in all casual like, then decide, kef it. "Quick question—which of the people in the pods do you like the least?"
She stares at me like I'm insane. "What do you mean, which people do I like the least?"
I hold up the broken wire. "There's bunches of these on the stasis pods. So if I cannibalize a few of them, we'll be good. Just point out which people look the least like they need to be saved, and I'll get to work."
"You are not doing that," she hisses at me.
"You're right. I can't get in that room." I hold the wire out to her. "Can you get them for me?"
"No, Adiron!" She smacks my chest, all indignant, and I have to admit, she looks sexy when she's angry. When she moves, her breasts jiggle, and I think about how they bounced last night when I was deep inside her…and now I want to have sex again. "We are not sabotaging other people's chances of survival to ensure our own."
"Sometimes you have to put yourself first." Jade's not going to last very long as a corsair if she doesn't.
"I thought you said this was an optional change? I don't want to do it."
"That's the thing…it might not be so optional. Some of these components are worse than I thought." I give her a bright smile to take the sting out of my words. "The good news is that if we get a few more of the conduction wires, we should have enough heat to power our quarters until the rescue arrives." I hold the wires up again. "We just have to get them."