2952-03-13 – Tales from the Service: The Engineer’s Interview 

Because of several requests to continue with Sadek Sherburn’s account of the formation of the crew of Visitor, I will continue it in between more topical accounts as those present themselves, at low priority, but there is a fair bit more of the original submission which could be edited for this space. 

Tugging at the stiff collar of a freshly-fabricated turquoise and black uniform, Sadek sat down at a pre-arranged corner table in the Charlestown. Though freshly shaved and wearing the nicest attire he’d owned in nearly two decades, he still felt out of place in the place, which was as close to a high-class establishment as he’d ever frequented. 

At least, he consoled himself, the food would be good. The Charlestown, one of the two original eateries built into the Sagittarius Gate waystation which had formed the core of the ungainly mass known as The Sprawl, was probably the best dining experience this side of the Gap. True, it would be a third-rate establishment on any major station in the Core, and on most worlds its fare would be considered hopelessly drab, but Sadek had never sampled cuisine in any of those places, and probably never would. 

Though the table’s holographic menu advertised dozens of enticing alcoholic drinks, Sadek requested only a sweetened, chilled coffee drink. This meal was, after all, a business meeting. 

A blonde woman in a simple gray tunic approached the table. “Mr. Sherburn?” She held out her hand. “I’m Alicia Powers.” 

“Ah, yes.” Sadek stood and shook her hand, then gestured to the seat opposite himself. “Have a seat. Can I get you a drink?” Kel had promised to reimburse his expenses, so he didn’t wince at the possibility of a sizable bill. That, at least, was one thing about the whole hiring process that Sadek didn’t need to worry about. 

Powers nodded and jabbed a finger into the menu too fast for Sadek to see what it was she had ordered, then sat back, folding her hands together on the table. She was, he estimated, a bit above thirty T-years old, with a cooly patient bearing that suggested that she’d  

Sadek realized after an awkward pause that she was waiting for him to speak – and after all, why shouldn’t she? He was supposed to be the interviewer, after all. After taking a sip of his drink, he cleared his throat and leaned forward. “Tell me about why you left your last posting, the Siren Song.” 

“Hmm.” Powers opened her mouth, but just then someone arrived and dropped off her drink, a milky beige liquid that smelled of strong, sweet spices. She nodded up to the attendant, then turned back to Sadek. “The Song is a good ship, but my contract was up, and I thought it was time for something new.” 

Sadek nodded, though this answer seemed too vague to be truthful. “Visitor will certainly offer you novelty, should we have you aboard. Your qualifications as a flight engineer are quite competitive, I must say. Do you think your skills are stronger with older systems, or with newer ones?” 

Powers frowned, probably wondering which answer was the right one. “Most old star drives and gravitic drives are simpler, but I have most of my crew time on relatively new models. The Song was running on a pair of EL-31 grav units and a Cimarran VV-6 Transitor... None of that is more than thirty years old.” 

Again, Sadek nodded to hide his reservations. He hadn’t heard of any civilian vessel using twin gravitic drive units; certainly if someone tried that on a launch-scale spacecraft, it would be ungainly and require constant tuning, lest the gravitic shear disruptions between the two engines shake the ship to pieces. “You were the only system engineer for a paired-drive powerplant?” 

“I was the only officially certified engineer.” Powers shrugged. “The skipper wasn’t certified, but he knew those drive systems so well that he could do everything I could. We had a couple crew techs that pitched in, too.” 

“He certainly left a glowing endorsement in your records.” Sadek had seen similarly stilted language of confidence in the crew dossiers for all the candidates he was considering, but if she was telling the truth, this one seemed well earned. “Obviously Visitor is a much smaller vessel, with a much simpler powerplant.” 

“Indeed. A curious vessel, by all reports. I regret that I did not see her when she was in dock. Is it really a xeno-built ship?” 

There was no reason to lie about this, so Sadek shrugged. “Originally it was. The powerplant was damaged beyond all repair, and my employer had it rebuilt with Terran systems.” 

Powers smiled. “I suppose I shouldn’t feel too badly about that; you’d hardly be looking to hire me to maintain an alien drive system. What’s the ship running now?” 

Sadek, to whom the systems manifest for Traveler was an incomprehensible jumble of serial numbers, called up the appropriate page on his wristcuff screen and held it out for Powers to see. 

The woman studied the display for a moment, then sat back. “A Mardsen-Keller HO-51? That’s high-end drive hardware for such a little ship, Mr. Sherburn.” 

Sadek frowned. It probably shouldn’t have surprised him that Kel had somehow arranged for premium drive systems for his rebuild of Visitor, but it did. “Have you worked on this type of gravitic drive before?” 

“Hardly anyone has worked on the HO-51 because it’s so new. Mardsen-Keller designs have partial parts compatibility with Edom Li drives, and I’ve spent nearly the last eight years on ships powered by Edom Li gravitic units.” Powers sipped her drink gingerly. “As long as you’ve got the manuals on file, though, I can handle it.” 

Sadek, knowing it was fruitless to  wonder how a brand-new drive unit from the Core had managed to make its way to the Sprawl to be installed on Traveler, but no solution to that mystery boded well for Sadek or for anyone else who signed on to crew the ship. Hiding his concerns behind a broad smile, Sadek spread his hands. “Do you have any questions for us?” 

“Only one.” Powers sipped her drink again. “What’s your angle, Sherburn?” 

Sadek blinked, suddenly feeling very cold. “My angle? Why would I need an angle with the salary rates on this crew?” 

“Sure. That’s what I thought, too.” Powers leaned in and lowered her voice. “Pay’s good enough for anyone who doesn’t see all the red flags not to look too close. Your dossier made me think that was all there was to it.” She narrowed her eyes. “But it’s damned clear that you’ve got eyes for all the trouble. So either you’re in on a pretty big secret, or you’ve got an angle.” 

Sadek winced. Perhaps, were he in Powers’s seat, he would have come to the same conclusion. If only things were that simple. “Kel got me off a pretty hard course.” Sadek didn’t really like the idea of being terribly honest with a near-stranger, but clearly Powers was perceptive enough that it was unwise to lie to her. “I was on a ship that couldn’t even keep its food-fabs working, with no prospects. I couldn’t really say no.” He dropped his shoulders. “I’ve got this feeling Kel thinks that when trouble comes, I’m the person that’ll get him out of it.” 

Powers nodded. “A smart spacer would jump ship and vanish at the first opportunity.” She arched one eyebrow, as if this was a suggestion. 

“Well.” Sadek downed the rest of his iced coffee in one long gulp. “If you’ve read my file, it’s pretty obvious that I’m not a very smart spacer.”