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"How much can I lift?"

"About fifteen tons unassisted. Today, you'll be mainly guiding the modules we pull off the ship, so weight limits should not be an issue."

"Okay."

"The bar with the arrow serves two functions. First, depending on how far you have twisted the mech's torso, the arrow will move to the left or right. Also, it indicates slopes in the floor. As soon as the point isn't facing downwards, you should carefully adjust your footing."

"Got it."

"There are monitors above you, primarily displaying the mech's rear view. Finally, the vertical dial to the far right is your throttle indicator."

"Seems deceptively simple, all things considered."

"There is a computer built into the mech's hips which helps with controlling the machine and maintaining balance. You can alter the foot position by holding the mode switch under your left thumb and move the joysticks. Shouldn't be necessary since we have a nice, flat hangar floor to work with."

"How do I move this thing?"

"Let's start with using the arms first. The joysticks control each arm independently. Forwards lowers the arms, backwards raises them. I know, it's exactly the opposite of normal body behavior but it's how most pilots operate."

Jenala nodded and used the sticks. The arms went up and down at the elbow.

"The mode switch under your right thumb toggles the shoulder joints. They are ball-mounted so you not only have up and down but in and out as well."

"This doesn't feel particularly natural," Jenala said, moving the arms slowly from left to right and back again.

I grinned. "That's 'safe mode' just to get you started. You see these nests of rings and pulleys dangling from the sticks?"

"That's kinda unavoidable. They get in the way all the time."

"They control the hand actuators. You wear them like gloves by putting your fingers through the rings."

She fiddled with the elastic cables.

"All right. Double-click both mode switches to enable 'free mode.' You steer with either the right or left stick. Hold the mode switch and tap either foot panel and don't be startled."

"Why-" Jenala closed her hand around the joystick. The mech's giant fist mirrored her gesture, slamming the fingers together with a loud metallic clang. "Oh." She tapped the right pedal.

"Well, take a few steps. Feather the right pedal and see if you can get us within touching distance of Consuela. Brake with the left one."

Much more carefully than I had been back on the farm, Jenala took her first tentative steps into the hangar. "How did you manage to both use the shield and hit those armored troopers back at the Waystation?"

"Once you've dialed in a heading, the computer keeps the Herc on track. For delicate maneuvering or long curves, you need to have a hand on the stick."

"Good to know. How about backwards walking?"

"Come to a full stop then tap the left pedal."

Jenala raised an arm and placed the Herc's open hand on top of Consuela's engine housing. "How was that?"

"Great. Now take a few steps backwards and use the button halfway up the stick. Make sure it locks."

"What does it do?"

"It activates the gyro controls for the torso. By shifting your weight in the seat, you can make the mech turn its torso."

"Oh, I have to try that. Can I break anything if I do it wrong?"

"Only if you were carrying a load. You might give me a concussion though so be careful. I have no seat belt back here." I grabbed the back rest of her seat.

Jenala activated the torso twist and gave it a try. I was almost jealous at how easy she made it look. She giggled like a kid with a new toy. "Not even in my wildest dreams would I have thought I'd one day control a huge mech with my butt," she whooped, making the Herc pump its fist. "Or at least one of its axes of movement." She reset the torso's direction and came to a full stop. "Now what?"

"Now comes the hard part. You familiarize yourself with the Herc some more, I'll crawl into Consuela's maintenance ducts and undo the locking bolts which keep the engines and the cargo bay in place. Once that's done, we'll pull them apart and I can't do it without you."

"Got it." She removed her fingers from the actuator control rig and reached upwards, caressing my cheek. "Do you still have second thoughts about this?"

"What makes you think that?"

"Sal, by now I can read your face. You looked like this all the time when we were on the Waystation. Something's bugging you. Is it the idea of having sex with San'yas?"

"You seem to be surprisingly cool with it, given your earlier complaints."

Jenala shrugged, a gesture the Herc copied with amazing ease. At least the left side. "It's obvious we won't go anywhere with a ship this busted. I would feel bad if you had to spend the night with her alone. After all, if I hadn't cut Nemex, most of this would probably never have happened. And finally, I wasn't lying. San'yas seems extremely lonely, despite her earlier nonchalance. It's not like I have much of a choice in the matter." A warm, genuine smile lit up her face. "I see it this way -- we may be sharing the bed with San'yas but I have high hopes we might actually manage to finish what we started before the meteor hit. It's not all bad." She pulled my head downwards and breathed a kiss onto my lips.

"Better?" she asked.

"Somewhat," I admitted, flashing a little smile. "But why did San'yas turn into a Marked One?"

"Oh, I asked her to."

"And why?"

"Two reasons. First, I'm curious. I've watched every single movie of the 'Marked Dynast' series and I want to try it for myself."

"And the other?"

"For you."

"Huh?"

"Sal. Once you bring me back to my fleet, you will probably never see me again. It is only fair I make sure you find a mate you can enjoy wholeheartedly. And since I have seen your three most likely choices, I have decided that hooking you up with Zeeris is the best outcome for you."

"You're... what?"

"Once I'm back home, you will return to Earth and probably end up in one of three scenarios. A -- you will drift from brothel to brothel, spending your hard-earned money on Felinoids. Fun but way too expensive. B -- Neira will try to ensnare you even further. I have to admit, I admire her guts but I can not condone her actions against you. Saddling you with a bomb. Forcing you into slavery -- another concept our species hates with a passion -- and making you work your cute butt off. No. Neira is bad for you. Which only leaves Zeeris and you won't allow yourself to relax around her until you've lost your butt cherry in a fun and pleasant fashion." She turned in her seat and craned her neck, her eyes alight. "Did I get that right?"

My mouth worked but I was utterly speechless. Who did she think she was? How could she-? What the flipping heck?

"You obviously spend too much time thinking," I said, throwing open the cockpit door.

"Says the man scowling at his main screen for eight hours. Come on Sal, please. Don't be mad."

I shuffled onto the mech's hip skirt and slid down the leg. "I'm much too shocked to be mad!" I was this close to yell at her to stay out of my fucking business but, to be honest, she had hit the nail on the head with her assessment. Most of my shock stemmed from the ease with which she had analyzed my near future, the options -- and her suggestion nearly floored me. I would have probably returned to business as usual, kept working for Neira in the vain hope I'd eventually lose my debt but she was probably right in assuming that Neira would never let me go. But hooking up with Zeeris?

I stomped back to the ship, ignoring the beeping of my comms. I had bolts to molest and they wouldn't complain if I went a little rough on them.

* * * *

Half an hour and six bolts later, I was ankle-deep in a maintenance duct of the left engine bay when I heard Jenala's footsteps come closer.

"Sal, can't we talk?"

"Any more life advice you'd like to share?" The bolt didn't budge. I adjusted the torque on the motorized ratchet and tried again.

"Why are you so angry all of a sudden? Did I say something wrong?"

"Well, no one likes to have their future laid out like that. Without warning to boot. Also, I would appreciate it if you talk to me before launching into plans to have my - how did you call it? - butt cherry taken. Where did you learn that word anyway?"

"'Purring Palace #3,' when Curly met her first Silician."

Above me, the bolt crunched and finally moved, although slowly. Seems like during some prior maintenance the bolt hadn't been properly put back in place. Rust flaked onto my face shield.

"What exactly did I do wrong? I only asked San'yas to turn into a Marked Zuthrian. I didn't go into detail in regards to why."

I caught the two-kilo rod of threaded titanium-steel alloy before it could fall and wriggled out of the maintenance duct. Standing up, I slapped rust off my coveralls and placed the bolt next to the others in a plastic container.

"Why Zeeris exactly? I told you: I don't fuck my associates or their siblings."

"Didn't take much to make an exception." Jenala grinned viciously. "Well, normally I'm not one to snoop in your possessions but there was this bag she left you with. Did you look inside?"

"No. Much too busy."

"I took the liberty of putting the perishables into the fridge. There was a bottle of Dragon Milk, some dried fruit mix, something like spicy crisps, a data chip - which I didn't look at -- and a length of braided leather."

"Braided leather..." There had to be some significance in that item. My knowledge of Zuthrian tribal rites only extended to what was shown in the holovids and I couldn't remember. Maybe I skipped past the info to get to the hot, messy sex.

Jenala rolled her eyes at me. "Hunters give braided leather to the ones they love before a dangerous undertaking. Once the quest is complete, you are supposed to return it to the one who offered it and tie it around their arm or leg, as a sign of an eternal bond."

"Are you saying Zeeris fucking proposed to me?"

Her grin was radiant. "All the more reason for you to loosen up and accept there will be some hot butt play in your future."

"I need to think about that. How lucky repairing the ship will take almost a week."

"Anyway, you should talk to her."

"I probably should, if only to tell her to drop the idea." I closed the maintenance hatch. "I don't feel like getting married, especially not with Neira breathing down my neck."

"Be nice to her." Jenala came close and embraced me. "I only wanted to help my friend and lover. You can't fault me for that. In our society, honesty is of the utmost importance." She flipped up the translucent plastic sheet which protected my face from flaking rust and kissed my lips. "Peace?"

Granted, I wasn't the best when people skills were concerned but even I was aware Jenala didn't mean ill. "Sorry for snapping at you. I'm not used to people meddling in my affairs."

"Except for Neira, huh?" She kneaded my butt through the coveralls.

"That's not 'meddling.' You know she owns me," I grumbled. "Did you come here just to talk or do you want to help out?"

"Since you ignored my calls, I had no other choice. I mean, first I did some more practice runs with the Herc and stacked a few dozen boxes to let you cool off then I came to find you." She ground her pelvis against me. "I see you like this way of dealing with problems."

"What can I say?" I returned the favor and cupped her butt, pulling her against my growing erection. "You're hard to be mad at. And before we completely forget what we're doing, how about you get one of those ratchets and help me with the remaining bolts?"

"Yes, captain!"

* * * *

Fifteen minutes later, I climbed into the cockpit of the Makuro and fired up the spider-like machine. Jenala, back at the Herc's controls, waved.

We had undone all the locking points keeping the back end of my ship together. Now it was only a matter of pulling away the sides and removing the cargo module to expose Consuela's guts. The Makuro unfolded and I carefully made my way through the hangar, taking great pains not to damage any of San'yas' other repair and salvage vehicles.

When the crane was in position, I left the cockpit and retrieved a zero-G propulsion unit -- or repulsor belt -- and wrapped it around my waist before levitating on top of the engine housing. There were three spots to attach a hook to and I had to pry them open. The Herc'sfingers were far too thick and clumsy for that particular task so I had to do it manually. While I was up there, I prepared the other engine housing and the cargo hold. Since it was by far the heaviest module, I asked Jenala to pass two Armorgrade rods which I threaded through the eyelets for extra stability.

With all the prep work done, I returned to the crane and made sure the hook had the requisite three-pronged grabbing claw attached. Then I brought the crane arm into position. Compared to using a Herc, the Makuro was much easier. No complicated arm joints to fiddle with, only the usual crane controls.

Jenala was barely able to see past the upper edge of the engine housing, even from the cockpit of the Herc. Nonetheless, she managed to guide the claw so I only needed to close it. I winched in the cable until the engine housing's weight was taken care of.

"Now for the fun part," I said over comms. "Use the hand rails to get a good grip and carefully pull the engine housing your way."

"Not so easy with most of the armor missing," Jenala said. "Do you mind if I make my own?"

"Only if you manage that without punching holes into the engine bay. I have no idea what San'yas might ask of us if we add a blockade runner's engine to the tally."

"I think I got it," Jenala said, knocking a half-molten armor plate off the side of the engine bay, revealing a mech-sized handhold. "Ready to pull." She grabbed the boxy enclosure and slowly walked backwards. At first, nothing happened. Then came the sound of metal shrieking on metal as long-unused rails moved against each other. The internal connections for power, cooling and the plasma circuit automatically disconnected when the modules were pulled apart. I checked the cable tension and adjusted as needed. Two minutes of tense silence later, the engine housing hung on the Makuro's arm.

"Where to?" Jenala asked.

"The adjacent landing bay. Try and keep it oriented as it was on the ship."

"Mhm." Together, we shuffled towards the next landing pad and deposited the fifty-ton engine housing.

Moving the second engine was a little easier since damage to the armor was much less severe and coordinating our movements became easier with practice. It took us only a few minutes to transfer the heavy engine to its temporary resting place one landing pad over.

Removing the cargo hold was by far the trickiest job we had to do. It wasn't much heavier than any of the engine bays but it was much bulkier and a bit more fragile thanks to the extensive modifications, like the hidden compartments and the torpedo launcher. It took us almost an hour to build a stand for it and move the giant metal box to its temporary resting place.

Without access to the power grid, the stasis boxes ran on their own batteries again. To make sure they wouldn't run dry, I hooked up a small generator. Sadly, the box hit by the meteor a few days ago was a lost cause. I didn't have the tools to repair a stasis box and when we had finally reached San'yas' repair shop, the contents had gone bad. At least the other two were in mint condition and with the generator providing power for at least forty-eight hours, there was no chance of the rest of the seed spoiling.

My comms beeped. After the meteorite impact, I had learned my lesson and took the call immediately.

"Captain, excuse the intrusion," Consuela's AI said. "I have just received an encrypted message from San'yas."

"Lets find out what she wants then." San'yas had compressed and encrypted the message, something usually only done when either comm bills or secrecy were at stake. Thankfully, the encryption cipher was freely available. Ninety seconds later, the message played. Audio only.

"I'm sorry to ambush both of you like this but I need help. Some scavengers have muscled in on my turf and I can't have that. They sabotaged my security system and are trying to abscond with one of the more intact Faceless ships in my collection. I would be much obliged if you could take one of the repair barges and meet me at these coordinates. You are of course not required to help me but my chances of rebuking these intruders will drastically improve with a little help. Send me a quick reply simply stating 'yes' or 'no.'" My comms beeped twice as both San'yas' whereabouts and the launch code for a salvage rig were extracted onto my wrist comms.

"Ugh, just perfect," I grumbled.

"What's up?" Jenala parked the Herc next to the cargo hold, placed the mech's hand on top of the metal box and left the cockpit, effortlessly balancing across the outstretched arm.

I replayed the message.

"We can't afford to let her die out there," Jenala said. "I wish she would have told us what kind of trouble she's dealing with."

"If they have enough manpower to hijack an entire ship, it has to be more than San'yas is comfortable tackling alone. A Faceless, with their telepathy and shapeshifting ability, can cause incredible havoc but they are not invincible."

"Well, what are we waiting for then? I mean, we have dismantled the ship already. Without the spares, we won't get anywhere, San'yas or no."

"True. Well, let's get the flight suits and our weapons."

Back in the ship, we quickly dressed and kitted ourselves out. I took my plasma rifle from a storage locker under the bed and made sure the power cells were charged.

"You expect serious trouble?" Jenala eyed the boxy rifle with its hexagonal barrel as I attached it to a clip on the flight suit's back.

"It never hurts to be prepared," I said, clipping two extra power cells to my thighs and the concussion gun to my waist. Jenala had both her sword and gun strapped to her hips. "She sounded worried so my gut reaction is to go for the big guns." I turned to leave, Jenala hot on my heels.

The repair barge -- a rather modern vehicle amidst all the half-built relics in the hangar -- was the same model we had seen on Waystation 36, a strong power core mated to a small cockpit, maneuvering jets and a set of folding arms for repairs and refueling. Tool racks had been welded to the sides, containing ship-sized saws, sanders and other implements used for ship repairs and maintenance. Contrary to the ones at the Waystation, this one was armed with an underslung plasma cannon.

"Oh, it's a two-seater!" Jenala exclaimed as she climbed into the cockpit. "We can practice flying together. I wonder how San'yas does it." She strapped herself into the co-pilot's chair. Besides another copy of the flight controls, she also had the arm levers on her side.

"Probably grows extra arms." I noticed an AI terminal. "Or she has the AI run some ship functions while San'yas does the fiddly stuff." I fired up the engines and maneuvered the barge out of the hangar. Nor only bothered with hangar bay doors when flying through the TransNet. In normal operations, they used so-called "Atmosphere Containment Fields" to ensure the hangar kept its air and temperature.

"Set a course heading for three-five-eight mark four-five," I said, bringing some distance between us and the large fortress-ship. "It's about halfway around the planet."

Jenala's fingers danced across a keypad. "Done." A nav point appeared on the transparent cockpit windows and I adjusted my trajectory accordingly. "I like the modular cockpit design among the Nor craft. Individual parts may be placed in different locations but I recognize most of the readouts and screens from your cockpit or the gun turret."