Part 8 (2/2)

”A cryodroid might be a good investment.”

”What?”

”I said, I think a cryodroid might be a good investment. Icebreaking.” The drill drowned Ordo's voice for a while. ”Should be able to melt ice faster than this.”

It was a long half hour. The brief spells at the ice face were getting harder each time, and they needed to save their energy blocks for Vau. Skirata felt his strength ebbing faster. The gravel released from the ice dug into the palms of his hands when he crawled into the tube, but they were so numb now he could hardly feel it. Eventually he resorted to his blaster, and the steam made the compartment feel like a sanisteamer.

Ordo checked the thickness of the ice. ”Nearly there. At least it's warm in here.”

”I'm sorry, son. Getting you into this.”

”Good training. Never done this before.”

”You should be out on the town with your girl at your age, not...”

”I don't feel right about using Besany to spy for us.”

It was right out of the blue. Ordo did that from time to time, revealing what was on his mind and making Skirata realize he didn't know everything about him, not even now. He must have been chewing it over while he slogged away at the ice.

”Mereel didn't force her, son. She knows the score.”

”I meant that I wasn't expecting to feel bad about it.”

So again, Skirata knew even less about Ordo than he thought. He decided not to comment and just let the lad ramble on, but Ordo went quiet again and more lumps of dirty, gritty ice fell out onto the deck as the cutter whined. He'd had his say.

The Republic uses you, son, but now we 're using the Re-public. Can 't let an a.s.set like Besany Wennen go to waste.

A breath of burning cold air on his face and a shout from Ordo snapped Skirata out of an exhausted trance, and some-how his adrenaline got him back on his feet.

”We're through. I see him.” There wasn't enough room for both of them in the tube. Ordo hacked frantically at the rapidly enlarging hole. When he leaned back to reach for a fibercord line, Skirata could see a black shape that didn't look like a man for a moment, but then he could make out part of the T-shaped visor of Vau's helmet. ”I'm cutting his packs free.”

The operation was now more like delivering a nerf calf. After much swearing and panting, Ordo backed out of the boarding tube, hauling Vau by a line around one shoulder. It sounded like he was dragging a coffin. Vau plopped onto the cargo bay deck in a heap, his armor so cold that it burned Skirata's fingers as he eased off the man's helmet.

Vau's hard, gaunt face was almost blue. Skirata pushed his eyelids back to check his pupils: they reacted to the light. Humans survived low temperatures even when they looked dead, and Vau was definitely alive. Skirata mentally listed all the procedures he had to follow, like looking for a pulse, counting breaths, not rubbing extremities, and diverting warmer blood from the core. ”Osik, Walon, you shabuir, don't you dare go and die on me now...”

Vau's head rolled and he mumbled back at Skirata. ”Mird,” he said. ”Mird ...”

Skirata had gone after Vau at least twice in his life fully in-tending to kill him. His instinct, funny thing that it was, now focused him totally on saving the man. Ordo slithered back-ward out of the tube again, dragging Vau's birgaan and a large bundle of plastoid sheeting that c.h.i.n.ked and clacked.

”Rescue breathing, Kal'buir” he panted. The effort had even taken its toll on Ordo. He grabbed Vau and half dragged, half carried him into the medbay, heaving him onto the bunk. Skirata trailed behind with the bags. ”I know your cussing can generate a few kilowatts of heat, but it's not reaching his lungs.”

”He's conscious and breathing. No CPR.”

”Okay. Dry. He's dry.” Wet clothing leached the heat fast. ”The suit held up.”

Skirata pulled off Vau's armor and grabbed whatever he could find from the locker to wrap him up. His fingers showed no signs of frostbite: corpse-cold, but still soft. That was something. ”Let Mird out.”

Mird shot out of the store compartment and nearly knocked Skirata over. The animal was good and warm. If anyone was going to snuggle up to Vau and transfer heat, Mird was the best choice. Ordo watched the strill flop onto its master with delighted little squeals and rumbles, s...o...b..ring over his face. Ordo seemed to find it suddenly funny.

”Thanks, Mird,” he said. ”You saved us both from a fate worse than death. Carry on, that strill.” He turned to Skirata. ”It's time to seal up and get out of here.”

”How are you going to break the surface ice?”

Ordo shrugged. ”Torpedo.”

”Well, the laser didn't attract any unwelcome attention, so go for it, son. I'll get some hot liquid into Vau.”

”Secure him in the bunk, because we're going to be banging out of here at quite an angle. You might want to hold off the hot liquid until we're stable again.”

Ordo never exaggerated. When he said quite an angle, he probably meant vertical. A few moments after the shock of an exploding torpedo bounced back at them, everything they hadn't had time to stow securely went sliding to the bulk-heads and Mird howled, claws nailed deep into the bunk housing. Aay'han leveled out. The loose objects thudded back down on the deck.

”Drink this,” Skirata said, lifting Vau's head with one hand and holding a beaker of the cube-sweetened hot water to his lips. Mird gave Skirata some grudging s.p.a.ce but spread it-self down the length of Vau's frame. ”Get it in your gut, Walon, or I'll have to heat your innards by shoving a blaster down your throat.”

Vau coughed, splas.h.i.+ng a fine spray of spit in Skirata's face. ”I'm going ... to tell everyone . .. what a soft chakaar you are, Kal.”

Well, his cognitive functions were just fine. No confused rambling there; Skirata ticked one more symptom off the first-aid list. ”Can you feel any injuries?”

”Not yet... you look worse than me . ..”

”Come on.” Skirata slopped more liquid into his mouth. He felt wrecked now. ”Get this down you.”

”Tell Delta?”

”Okay, yes.” Vau had a few saving graces: he knew his lads would be worried sick about him, and that they needed to know he'd been extracted. ”Will do. Now what the shab was worth nearly freezing to death for?”

”What the shab,” Vau said hoa.r.s.ely, ”was worth nearly... killing yourself... to save me?”

”I wanted your armor. Better environment seals than mine, obviously. You could survive a sarlacc in that.”

Vau actually smiled. He didn't do that often. He had very even, white teeth that proved he'd had a healthy and well-fed early childhood. ”Birgaan ... take a look inside ...”

Ordo's voice cut into the s.h.i.+p's comlink system. ”I'm heading for the RV point, Kal'buir. I've informed General Jusik that Vau's inboard.”

”Good lad,” said Skirata.

”Good lad,” Vau chorused. ”How much did this sub cost you?”

”Shut up and drink.”

Skirata waited until he'd forced three beakers of diluted energy cubes down Vau's throat before giving in to an animal curiosity that overrode every weary ache and pulled muscle. He untied the bundle. As the contents spilled across the med-bay deck, there was only one word he could spit out.

”Wayii!”

Vau made a coughing sound that might have been laugh-ter. He didn't get a lot of practice at that. Skirata was trans-fixed by the tide of valuables, so much so that his hands were shaking when he unfastened the backpack's a.s.sortment of pouches. What spilled out stifled any further comment. He knelt down on the deck, knowing his old ankle injury was screaming for a painkiller but far too engrossed in sorting through the booty to give it any time.

There was a lot here. A lot. Hundreds of thousands of credits' worth. He stretched out his hand and rummaged cautiously. No-millions.

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