Indi wrinkled her nose as she and Hierax walked into engineering on the Zi’i warship, a high-ceilinged room with computers and machinery lining all the walls. Unlike in engineering on the Falcon 8, a lot of the workings were open or behind transparent walls instead of hidden behind panels. Coils, wires, conduits, and devices she couldn’t name made things seem a tangled mess to her eye.

Hierax strode straight to a pair of deck-to-ceiling cylinders that throbbed with light, hopping onto a box positioned at a console between them. Apparently, the Zi’i were taller than humans when they stood on their hind legs. Straw scattered the deck, giving engineering the feel of a barn. A high-tech barn. There weren’t any seats bolted to the deck, and having seen the Zi’i, Indi couldn’t imagine how they would have sat down, anyway. Maybe they rested in the straw when they needed a break.

Hierax whistled happily as he tapped holographic buttons in the air above a tablet computer that had been hooked up to the console. An open pack and some of the same equipment he’d used to analyze the gate sat on the deck, a few cables attached to machinery. Indi supposed thinking of them as jumper cables wouldn’t be quite right, but everything looked jury-rigged. Maybe it was. There probably wasn’t a big market for human-to-alien interface cables out there.

Indi peered into the shadows all around them. After Treyjon had admitted to being sent over with Lulu to check for remnants of the original crew, she half-expected some big furry Zi’i warrior to leap out from behind banks of machinery. She wouldn’t admit it, but it had taken her some persuasive self-talk before she’d been able to step foot on the warship—the fact that Treyjon and Angela had come along had helped. Maybe one day, she would feel more comfortable traipsing around on alien planets and spaceships, but she still preferred the safety of her office back home.

Hierax trotted to another station to flip a few switches. A large view screen on a wall came on, displaying the view out the front of the ship. They were flying low over the city, and Indi glimpsed the crater she and Hierax had skirted earlier. They would reach the gate soon.

“Should we get our armor and be ready?” Indi asked. “In case anything happens on the way back up?” She had seen the case holding Hierax’s armor down by the airlock when she’d left her borrowed set down there.

“The ship won’t fall out of the sky instantly,” Hierax said. “We’ll have some warning if things start coming apart.”

“I’m not sure whether to find that comforting or not.”

Hierax grinned back at her, looking like he was enjoying himself, the possibility of death notwithstanding.

Indi tried to relax. They were picking up a metal donut and taking it into space. That was it. Compared to the battles she’d already lived through, not to mention being fired at by irritated alien drones, this would be easy. Besides, she’d had her chance to leave and had opted to stay. Whatever happened, this had been her choice.

She watched Hierax as he worked, tempted to ask if she could help, but assuming she would be in the way. He wore his uniform trousers and gray tank top again, as usual, albeit he had changed into one without rips and bloodstains. Either he was always warm, or he liked to show off his guns. She tried to remember if she’d ever seen him wearing the black fatigue jacket that was supposed to go over the tank top. The rest of the crew wore the full uniform, each in an identical manner—no buttons undone and the sleeves folded up over the forearms in a precise manner that revealed the tattoo. She suspected that was per their regulations. Regulations Hierax defied?

Indi had a feeling the captain liked him and gave him more latitude than Hierax realized.

“Is this thing working?” came a voice over the intercom.

“We hear you, Asan,” Hierax said.

“Oh good. Communications isn’t labeled yet. Just wanted to let you know that the Falcon is in place, most of our visitors have returned to the ship, and we’re ready to start, Chief.”

“Everything checks out here. What do you mean most of our visitors?”

“Treyjon couldn’t find the svenkar before he had to go back. Apparently, they were doing the rounds, and it tore off after a rat or something. Whatever it was must have been enticing because it wouldn’t come back to their calls. Treyjon didn’t want to leave it, but the captain insisted he and Angela return to the Falcon.”

Indi was surprised she hadn’t been called back. Did the captain actually know she’d stayed here? Maybe he hadn’t thought to ask about her.

Hierax rubbed the back of his neck. “I hope it catches the rat and that it sates that animal’s hunger, because I don’t want to become a svenkar snack while I’m working on something in engineering.”

“If I knew how to lock the bridge doors, I’d be doing that now, Chief. Those beasts are all fangs. Hungry fangs.”

“Just stay alert.”

“Maybe if I push my cooler and some boxes in front of the doors…”

“Are Woo and Nax in engineering on the Falcon?” Hierax asked.

They could worry about finding the svenkar later. Or bringing Treyjon back to find the svenkar.

There was a pause before Asan responded with, “Zakota reports yes, sir. Though he’s miffed that they wouldn’t come up to rub his big lucky charm before everything got started.”

“Is that a penis euphemism?” Indi whispered.

Hierax blinked at her. “No. Haven’t you seen Zakota’s station? It’s covered in talismans and charms and the gods only know what else he calls them.”

He opened a cabinet full of gauges and switches and poked at a few things.

“I haven’t been on the bridge much,” Indi said.

“Next time you go, look for the station with all the doodads dangling around it. Zakota carves them out of wood or bone and supposedly infuses them with the power of the gods. He thinks he’s a shaman.”

“Is he?”

“Who knows? Next time you’re there, ask him if you can rub his charm and see if you have good luck after that.”

“I’d be more interested in rubbing your charm,” she said, smirking, though he was so busy checking everything, he probably missed the innuendo. She wasn’t entirely sure he would get it if he were standing in front of her and listening intently.

“Which one?” he asked, closing the panel.

“You have more than one?”

“Zakota has suckered me into buying three,” Hierax said, walking toward her. “One is supposed to bless my hands, so none of my repairs will fail. One is supposed to entice women to fall at my feet, and one is a general purpose one to grant me the divine favor of the gods.” He frowned thoughtfully as he joined her. “Was your comment a penis euphemism?”

“Yes.”

“Oh.” He still appeared thoughtful as he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with her, glancing at her as they faced engineering. “Rubbing would be acceptable then. Preferably with sufficient lubrication.”

“I didn’t bring any of that into space with me.”

“Equipment works better with sufficient lubrication.”

She squinted up at him. “Did you truly buy a charm designed to cause women to fall at your feet? I feel like you’d be mulling engineering problems, step over the women without noticing them, and continue on.”

“It was a two-for-one charm deal. It was free when I purchased the blessed hands one. Zakota is a better salesman than you would think.”

A deep hum came from a machine to their right.

“Is that supposed to do that?” Indi asked.

“Asan has deployed the tow beam. That’s the generator.”

“The warship and the fire falcon have locked on to the gate,” Asan said over the comm. “We’re lifting off at the assigned angle now.”

Hierax tilted his head, looking at Indi again. “You seem nervous. Is it because I talked about four-hour falls?”

“Among other things. I’m still getting used to being someone who leaves the ship—or my planet.”

“Me too.”

“I don’t believe you. You seem excited about all this.”

“I’m in an engineering room, and you’re talking about rubbing my charm. Of course I’m excited.”

“Even though I didn’t bring lubrication?”

“Even though.” He smiled and slipped his arm around her waist. “I probably shouldn’t be, but I’m glad you stayed.”

She leaned against him, feeling the hard ridges of muscle through his shirt. She turned enough to rest her hand against his abdomen.

“Want me to show you some stuff?” Hierax asked.

“Your charm?” Indi smiled, knowing this wasn’t the right time for that. He didn’t need any distractions.

The generator clunked and whirred before returning to a steady hum, and she couldn’t help but give it a concerned glance. Maybe she needed a distraction.

“The controls.” He dropped his hand to rest it atop hers, his skin warm, the gesture comforting. “In case something happens to me, and you end up chief of Zi’i engineering.”

“That would be an interesting job title to put on my résumé back home.”

“Do you miss it? Home?”

“Yes.”

Indi hesitated to admit how much she longed for her comfortable, predictable life with Hierax gazing down at her, someone who would, no doubt, stay on the Star Guardian ship once this was all over. He wouldn’t be enticed by the idea of visiting Earth, getting a job there, and dating her. Or moving in with her. What would he be like to live with? He would be one of those geeks who had to have a man cave and four garages and a workshop full of projects. But even if he had all that, wouldn’t he be bored? He seemed like someone who needed tests and challenges, such as came to a chief engineer aboard a ship that was constantly being attacked by enemies.

“So, you’d probably never consider leaving it,” Hierax said, “for the adventure of living on a spaceship, spending your days helping fix problems and your nights being entertained by a well-lubricated engineer.”

“Adventure isn’t something I’ve ever craved.”

“What about engineers?”

“Well…” She peered into his eyes, not certain how serious he was about his offer, or if it was even an offer. He didn’t truly have the power to offer her a place on his ship, did he? If she were to ever consider leaving Earth, she would rather live on a planet, a high-tech one with lots of opportunities, lots of need for computer specialists who, with time, could certainly learn new languages, programming and otherwise. She almost laughed at the idea of being across the entire galaxy from her ex. She’d gone to Flagstaff to put some distance between them. This would be far more effective. Though she found herself caring less about him now. So much had happened in the last month that he almost seemed a distant memory.

But could she actually move across the galaxy? To Dethocoles or some other high-tech planet? And if she did that, would she ever see Hierax? How often did the Star Guardian ship return to Dethocoles?

He bent his head and kissed her.

Since he’d been talking about giving her a tour, it surprised her. But she shifted closer to him, immediately finding it appealing. Finding him appealing.

He wasn’t drugged this time, except with something to keep him awake. That shouldn’t have made him libidinous. No, this was a sincere kiss, one he had initiated, one that meant he was enjoying their playful repartee. He might be a geek, easily distracted by his love for his work, but he’d said it himself that he could appreciate a woman’s curvy bits.

The arm around her waist tightened, and he lifted his free hand to her head, tucking a few of her braids back, then stroking the side of her face. He slid his tongue along her lips, and she parted them, aroused by his taste, his touch, his interest.

There were times that she might have thought him indifferent, or oblivious, but his full attention was on her now, his tongue stroking her, playful as he teased her tongue, inviting her to stroke him back.

His masculine scent filled her senses, and warmth flowed through her body, coiling and tightening deep within her. Her thoughts soon involved far more than kissing. She slid her hand over his abdomen and chest, the definition of his muscles easy to feel through the thin material of his tank top. But she craved the warmth of his skin over the bland texture of the fabric. She tugged it out of his waistband and slipped her hand under the hem. She ran her fingers up his waist and over to his pecs, rubbing him, scraping her nails over his skin. How could someone even geekier than she was have such a hot body?

A moment of self-doubt went through her. Would he find her body as appealing? Her gym visits were infrequent, and lithe and athletic were not words her ex had ever used to describe her. Nobody had.

But whatever Hierax was thinking about, the gym probably wasn’t it. As she teased him, dragging her nails along the firm contours of his chest, he groaned into her mouth and stepped closer. He pressed himself against her, his arm tightening to keep her from escaping, as if she had that in mind. She leaned into him, his hard chest contrasting with the soft roundness of her breasts.

A tremor ran through the decking. Indi might not have noticed it, might have dismissed it, but the helmsman spoke on the comm again.

“We’ve reached ten kilometers in altitude, Chief. A couple of alarms have popped on up here. They’re on the engineering console, and we don’t have tape labeling those controls, so I’m not sure how critical things are.”

The deck quaked with another tremor.

Hierax pulled back from his kiss, though he did not release Indi. He turned his head in the direction of the speaker and said, “Checking it.”

He looked back at her, his face inches from hers. He kissed her again, and for an incredulous few seconds, Indi thought he would ignore his duty, but his lips soon parted from hers. Before releasing her, he nuzzled her ear, fingers curling into her hair and massaging her scalp. She melted against him, perfectly willing to let him do that all day, engineering alarms or not.

“You should stay with me on the Falcon,” he whispered, his lips brushing her ear and sending shivers through her. His hand slid down her back, following the curve of her hip and then her butt, cupping her against him. “Solving problems with me while telling me riddles.”

“What’s in it for me?”

“I’ll let you rub my charm.”

“You better be willing to rub some of my charms,” she whispered, though she ran her hand up his muscular arm as she did so, knowing full well that she was enjoying the hell out of rubbing him. The idea of tugging his uniform off and having access to the rest of him excited her.

“I’ll rub all of your things. Just tell me what you like. I’m a quick learner.” He squeezed her ass and nipped at her earlobe, and she gasped as pleasure rocketed through her.

Unfortunately, he let her go then, stepping back. “My helmsman needs me.”

He headed for one of the control panels, but he looked over his shoulder as he walked, his eyes intense, full of passion that she wouldn’t have expected him to display for more than his tools.

“He’s not the only one,” she whispered.

The view on the wall screen had shifted, no longer showing the way ahead. It was focused on the side of the winged Falcon 8 and also the huge ring-shaped gate flying between and behind both ships. Whitish-blue beams came out of the rears of both ships, looking more like flashlight beams than energy fields able to lift objects and drag them through space. But they came at the gate from two angles and somehow held it there, a high-tech version of a towline.

Hierax plucked something out of his pack. It looked like a metal mixing bowl with wires sticking out of the bottom. He tapped a button, flipped it over, and plopped it on his head as he walked back to the console between the glowing cylinders, the engines, presumably.

“I suppose a goofy hat is one way to dampen one’s fiery libido,” Indi observed. “Less time-consuming than a cold shower.”

“If you’re telling me I’m not sexy in my N-controller, I don’t believe you.” Hierax canted it at what might optimistically be considered a roguish angle. Then his face grew more serious as he squinted at the cylinders and the console. “Engine power is steady, Asan,” he said. “I’m not seeing the source of the alarms. Are you sure they have to do with engineering?”

“Not at all, but they came up on the console that you pointed to a few days ago and said was the interface for engineering.”

“I may have to come up there.”

“To show me your goofy hat?”

Indi blushed, realizing the comm must have been open still, and that Asan had heard her joking about libidos and cold showers. She hoped he hadn’t heard any kissing sounds earlier, especially when she remembered Hierax moaning as she rubbed his chest. At the time, she’d found it flattering. But she’d also thought they had some privacy.

“Indi?” Hierax waved her over, closing the comm channel. Firmly. “I’m going to give you the hat and show you a few things.”

“Of course.” Nerves danced in her stomach at the idea of being involved in something crucial when she had no idea how to read Zi’i or what anything here was, but she tried not to look daunted. “I’ve been waiting for days for you to let me hold one of your tools.”

“Was this one of the ones you imagined?” He lifted the mixing-bowl-hat and placed it on her head.

“Not exactly.”

He combed his fingers through her braids, parting a few so that a couple of prongs reached through and touched her scalp. “These are neat.”

“The prongs stabbing me in the head?” she asked.

“No, your hair. The braids.”

“Oh.” She wondered what he would think if she confessed that she had short hair and those were extensions that had been braided in. “Thanks. I was hoping for sexy, but neat will do.”

He grinned. “The sexy parts are lower.”

He outlined an hourglass shape with his hands, and she laughed, even if it was silly. He was silly. But maybe that was all right. She’d done serious before, and it hadn’t ended well. Someone who could make her laugh when a spaceship was rattling itself to pieces all around her wasn’t bad to have.

“Given a chance,” she said, “I think I can make you come to appreciate the allure of my hair touching you.”

“I’m open to experimentation.” He stuck a finger under the hat and flicked something.

Indi twitched in surprise as it came on. Something like a video game display appeared before her eyes. Almost in her eyes. It didn’t seem like a holographic display; it seemed like she was inside of a virtual reality. She could still see Hierax and the outline of the engines, but they had faded to a shadowy gray. The game or whatever it was displayed much more brightly, a big clear tank with water in it and corks sticking in holes on the sides. A couple of corks looked loose, like they might fall free, allowing water to spill out.

“You see the engines?” Hierax asked.

“The engines? I see a water tank.”

“Good. That’s—hm, this is too complicated to explain quickly, but it’s something I made during the war, when I often had to interface with Zi’i tech, even though I couldn’t read their language or understand any of their computer languages. With some AI translation help, I made this. It’s an interface that allows us to interact with Zi’i tech, with the computer doing all the understanding and then translating things into a very simplified version that we can understand. There are corks, right?”

“Yes.”

“You have to keep the corks in the tank and the water from falling below the red line. In reality, you’re making adjustments to keep the engines from red-lining, but the computer—” Hierax rapped a knuckle against the metal hat, “—is doing the hard work, and you’re just playing a game.”

“A game where the ship will blow up if I’m not fast enough at plugging up holes?”

“The engines will probably just go offline if the water goes below the red line.”

“Oh, so we don’t blow up. We crash.”

Hierax spread a hand, palm up.

“If your computer is so smart, why can’t it just keep the holes plugged on its own? Why does it need someone helping?” Indi was skeptical about the hat and the gamification of a computer interface, even if it seemed like the kind of thing her own people would do.

“It should keep them plugged. You’re just backup. While I work on—”

“Chief, I’ve got another alarm popping up here.”

“You can do it,” Hierax said, patting her shoulder. “I’ll be right over here at the tow beam generator. I’m going to check a few things. You don’t have to touch anything to make adjustments. Just think about putting the corks back in, and it should work.”

“Should.” A part of her thought he might be pranking her, that this was just some silly mixing bowl, but she did see the tank and the corks. The water was also sloshing around inside. She didn’t find that comforting.

Hierax jogged to the generator.

“Shit!” came an alarmed curse over the comm.

“What now, Asan?” Hierax asked.

But someone from the Falcon 8 answered instead. Commander Korta, his voice like two rocks rubbing together.

“The gate has activated,” he said.

“Explain.” Hierax glanced toward the view screen.

Nothing had visibly changed on the gate, but Indi could imagine some battery surging to life within its casing.

“Gladly, Chief Hierax. We’re approximately seventy thousand kilometers from the surface and will escape the planet’s grav—”

Hierax opened his mouth, but someone else interrupted Korta first.

“Explain the gate coming on,” Captain Sagitta said.

The strongest tremor yet coursed through the ship, and the deck bucked under Indi’s feet.

The water sloshed around inside the virtual tank. Two of the corks wobbled. She reached forward, as if she could push them in with her fingers, but she realized she had to use her mind. She imagined shoving them further into their holes.

Nothing happened.

A dribble of water started under one. Swallowing and tamping down her sense of alarm, Indi concentrated harder, focusing on one at first. She imagined a mallet tapping the cork back into its home. To her surprise, a mallet exactly as she’d pictured appeared in the air and thumped the cork three times.

“Whatever works,” she whispered, imagining the mallet shifting to the other loose cork. She soon had it hammered in, as well.

“I cannot explain the reason, sir,” Korta said, “though I could perhaps hypothesize. Its internal power generator has activated, and it’s putting out a magnetic field. This is causing fluctuations that are disrupting the tow beams. The computers are compensating, but it’s already a very fine balance, so—”

“I’m aware of the balance issue,” Hierax said, all of his earlier humor gone. He was utterly serious as he did his work, fingers flying over the alien console as he spoke. “I’m doing my best to compensate on my end. How do we get the gate to turn off? It’s not going to try to form a wormhole connection to some other system from orbit, is it?”

“I speculate that some sensor inside the gate has realized it’s being transported and has created the magnetic field as protection,” Korta said.

Another tremor coursed through the deck, and an ominous snap came from deep within the bowels of the vessel.

“It doesn’t need protection,” Hierax said. “It has us.”

“Steady yourself, Asan,” came Zakota’s voice from the fire falcon. “You’re drifting away from us at a .183 degree angle.”

“We’re having some tech issues here, sir,” Asan said, his voice strained.

“Working on it,” Hierax growled. “We were right on the edge of having the power to make this work if everything went perfectly.”

He didn’t point out that things weren’t going perfectly. No need to.

A cork popped out of the virtual water tank, and Indi yelped.

“You all right?” Hierax called over.

“No—yes.” She could do this, damn it. It was a game, that was it. “Yes,” she repeated more firmly. “I’ll take care of it.”

Water spilled from the tank, and the cork lay on the floor next to it. All she had to do was plug it back in.

Indi imagined herself some Jedi knight levitating inanimate objects. If Yoda could lift an X-wing with his mind, Indi ought to be able to float a cork into the air.

Juanita ought to appreciate the reference. Too bad she wasn’t here, so Indi could share it. No, better that she and the others were on the Falcon. They ought to be safe there, no matter what happened here.

The cork rose slowly as water poured out through the hole. Indi was aware of the level inside the tank creeping down, but she concentrated on nothing but the cork. Lifting it, turning it just so, and pushing it toward the hole. She grimaced when she met resistance. Even though it was all virtual, she could feel the water pushing against the cork. She produced the mallet again. After placing the cork, she whacked it back into the hole. The leak stopped.

“Hah,” she said.

Now, was there a way to fill up the tank again? The water level hadn’t dropped to the red line, but one or two more incidents like that, and it would.

“Hierax?” she asked.

A scream of sheer pain came over the comm.

“What in Hades?” Hierax blurted. “Asan, was that you?”

A stream of curses interjected with pants and grunts and cries answered him.

“Lieutenant Asan,” Sagitta said, his voice calm as it cut through the pained yells and curses. “Report.”

“There’s a gods damned fire,” Asan managed to bite out before switching to curses again.

“Damn it.” Hierax backed away from the generator and ran over to Indi. He pulled a stunner off his belt and held it out to her. “I need to run up and check on that. You’ll be all right here for a few minutes, right?”

No! she wanted to cry.

But whatever was going on up on the bridge sounded more important than her little water tank problem. She could keep the corks in for a few more minutes.

“Yes.” She took the stunner, trying not to consider why he might think she would need it, and forced a smile.

“Good. Thanks.” He sprinted out of engineering as Asan’s cries of distress continued. He must have been burned. Badly.

If he couldn’t pilot the ship, who would?