ADEM

Four months out of Gaul

The Hajj hung motionless in space. When in motion, inertia was on the crew’s side. If the engines cut out, the ship would stay on course. Headed toward some human civilization, rescue might be possible. But being frozen there at zero velocity had Adem’s teeth on edge.

Sometimes the engines built by the United Americas just stopped, without reason or warning, and never came on again. It had happened on other Trader ships. If it happened now, leaving the Hajj a fixed point in space until the Big Crunch… Adem shuddered. In all his years on board, unless it was docked, the Hajj had never been so still.

But that’s what Hisako needed for her tests.

“That is going to work,” she said.

“I won’t argue.” Adem stuck his multi-tool back in his pocket and stepped away from the probe. Cameras, sensors, and a computer wrapped around some spare thrusters. It was ugly, ungainly, and unique. Adem’s first attempt at building something capable of powered flight. The little spacecraft’s job was not overly complicated: go forward twenty-nine klicks, take some pictures, and return. The fact that its course would take the probe through an artificially created wormhole changed little, at least in theory. “Let’s go up to the bridge and make sure.”

Adem had built the probe in the forward airlock. Upon reaching the bridge, he launched it by removing the air, opening the outer door, and applying the forward thrusters by remote control. The probe floated free until he brought it to heel to the left of the bridge. “Hisako, look out the port window and wave.” The photo came up on the primary view screen, a portrait of starship and scientist. “I think we’re ready to go.”

Hisako woke the newly installed console. Worm-drive control. “We’re fully charged,” she said. “I’m doing it.”

With an invisible hand, the Hajj reached out to the space-time ahead of it and squeezed. Even after four months on the project, Adem didn’t understand all the physics behind it. The drive’s technology was related to the ship’s mass-grav system, and gravity-wave manipulation, dark-matter injections, magnetism, negative energy, and quantum entanglement all played a part. The important bit, he’d decided, was that it worked.

“We’ve got a stable wormhole!” Hisako said. “Send the probe through!”

Adem activated the program he’d coded for the probe. He could not see the wormhole, but sensors on the ship and probe said it was there. His tiny spacecraft – he should have named it! – sped away from the Hajj, diminished in the bow camera’s view, and disappeared.

“It should only take a minute.” Adem kept an eye on the clock. “How’s the hole?”

“Holding,” Hisako said.

“I just decided to name the probe. The Midnight Special. Any objections?” Seeing none, he told the nearsmart to put it in the ship’s record.

“How much longer?” the captain said. Her voice was tense, her face shiny. She sat forward in her chair like she might need to leap out at any moment.

“It’s back.” The probe sped back into the camera’s range. “And it’s transmitting.” Adem sent the pictures to the view screen.

“That looks like Nov Tero to me,” Lucy said. “Nice work!”

Hisako’s shoulders relaxed. “I’m closing the wormhole.” The Hajj released its grip. “It’s closed. No sign of a tear.”

“Get The Special back inside and pull it apart. I want to know how it held up.” The captain leaned back in her chair. “When can we try it again?”

Adem and Hisako exchanged glances. “Give me a couple of days,” she said. “If the probe checks out, we can reuse it. If not, Adem can–”

“If the probe’s damaged, I’m not risking the ship,” the captain said. “You have two days. Being parked like this makes me tense. I keep thinking someone is going to plow into us.”

Collision with another ship was near impossible, even more so because of the course change Lucy had made when they left Gaul, but the very idea made Adem’s skin crawl.

“Two days,” Hisako said. “Adem, can you handle the autopsy on the probe by yourself? I want to run a diagnostic on the drive.”

Adem steered The Midnight Special back into the airlock. Maiden voyage complete, trial one successful.