“The same as high in the mountains?”
“Yeah, the same as up in the mountains. Have you seen these little ships take off and land?”
He makes that noise of agreement. “You fly high like a cloud-seeker.”
“Yes. There are two engines, which I can show you. They get us off the ground and keep us flying.” I walk through the cabin. “This is where you’ll be sitting, and how you strap in. There’s a bathroom over there. But the whole trip should only take a fewhours.” We leave at dawn and have the sun at our backs the entire time. The idea is that it will make it harder for someone to spot us.
There had been debate about traveling at night, but we didn’t want to land only to have to relocate come daylight. At least in daylight we will be able to find a place to stop and set up that’s far enough away that we don’t draw attention.
“Hours?”
At first, I think he doesn’t understand the concept of time, but he has been around the colony long enough to understand.
“It took us almost a month to cross the ocean,” he finishes.
“I think it was brave to cross the ocean on a few pieces of wood, powered only by a sheet of cloth.”
His lips move as he processes my words. “We…” He moves his arms back and forth. “We powered the ship.”
“You rowed?” That does not make his voyage sound any better.
He nods. “If you have no engines, what happens?”
“I aim for a soft landing.” At his frown, I continue. “I can glide us down. If I can’t, there are parachutes under the seats. You put it on and jump out a door.” I point to the exit in the cabin. “Then pull the cord and pray.” Though if it came to that, we are all fucked. “I can fly with only one engine. We will be fine. Come on, I’ll show you the cockpit.”
He seems reluctant but follows me through another bulkhead. There is an emergency door that seals the cockpit, but I’ve never needed to use it.
“This is where I sit, and fly.” There’s an array of controls. Nothing like what the colony ship had, and I was never allowed to touch any of them. All the training I had before landing was in the simulator, but I’d been working on ships and engines for ten years by then. Some of the other engineers specialized in things like refrigeration or electrical components, or small motors.Because I tested well for flying, I was put on to ships. While the main ship was used for parts to build the colony, all the smaller ones are needed—and not just to run supplies to outposts. I’ve also hauled timber, ore samples from potential mine sites, and dead animals for food. That was the worst, as I was the one who had to scrub the cargo bay.
“Two seats.” He points to the other one.
“Sometimes someone sits there to keep an eye out, or to mark up a map, or learn to fly.” I haven’t taught anyone yet. At thirty, I wasn’t the youngest person in the colony; there were some who were only twenty. But the leaders weren’t rushing to train other pilots. I guess they figured we could keep flying for another thirty years and teach the next generation.
Food and clothing were the things at the top of the list to stabilize the colony. After that, it was mining so we could make the metal to fix things. But there is only so much we can fix. Eventually, the electronics will fail, and it isn’t as though we can make more microchips or motherboards.
Maybe in thirty years’ time there will be no ships to fly.
Hrad sits in the other seat, hands pressed to his thighs, and draws in a deep breath. “I have no place here and no place there.”
I drop into my seat and turn to face him. “Are you worried you’ll be killed?”
“No. Are you not worried the tribe will find us and catch you?”
I laugh. “I’m not that easy to catch.”
And neither was he. Three months of women flirting and trying to catch his attention and he had ignored them all. I give him another closed-lip smile. “You have avoided being caught.”
His eyes are dark in the dim interior of the ship. “Mostly. I have fought off attackers and killed. I have raided and taken what I need to survive.”
He’s talking about literal survival, and I meant dating.
“Your people do not need me to help them hunt. They prefer to do it their own way.”
“This mission is all about being quiet and unnoticed. Get in, get the samples and observations and get out.”
He inclines his head. “Like stealing eggs from a screamer.”
I’m about to agree but stop. The screamers are big, black things that scream and attack anyone who goes near their nests. That was when some of the women were taken, or rescued, by the warriors. “Didn’t that go badly?”
