A Starship Called Starsong

Chapter 45

We walked up the ramp to the older spaceship. The state of the hull told me why the Captain was so willing to sell his experienced AI – this ship clearly needed some repairs. The access door opened, and the Captain of this ship came out before we reached the top of the ramp. The security guard watched us with a passive expression.

The Captain's eye flickered between me and Ronan, but Ronan was slightly behind me, clearly showing that I was the Captain. The Captain glanced across the docking station towards the Starsong's new-looking exterior before focusing on me once again. He was clearly trying to figure out how I became Captain of a new ship.

We reached the top of the ramp, and I held out my hand for a handshake as I greeted him. "Captain Lawson, nice to meet you."

He shook my hand. "Captain Wanderer, it is my pleasure. Let me guide you to the Bridge."

We chatted about idle things such as rumors of the better trading routes as well as where we were heading next.

Starsong informed me, "Technology can't go inside that protected side-room with the main database console. I will have to completely shut down your communication device since it is so much more advanced than a normal one. Ronan is aware of this and will keep his eyes open, although he is not allowed to enter that room since he isn't a Captain."

I already knew I would have to hand my Guide to Ronan while I was in that room, but now that I thought about it, Starsong hadn't given me this particular communication device until after I had transferred all of the AIs. 'Thanks for the heads up. If something does go south, how quickly can it power back up?'

"In less than two seconds, but it can't power up while inside the protected side-room."

I had learned that those side-rooms were always well-protected and had some sort of built-in field that tended to damage any electrical device other than the Main Database Console. Even the existence of that side-room in the ships was kept quiet, although every spaceship that was mid-sized or larger had one.

The Bridge crew knew about it, but only the Captain ever went in. For major updates, the specialists or computer technicians were able to connect to the control panel on the sidewall by the fuses, but they didn't go into the room, if they even knew where it was. It was almost impossible to locate the door unless you knew where it was. Logan hadn't even known the exact location of the side-room on the Tyndel.

"-and here is the Bridge."

The Officers all stood at attention as the First Officer announced, "Captain on the Bridge."

The First Officer's position was one position that Starsong had no desire to fill. As far as Starsong was concerned, he was my backup, and the Officers on all shifts knew it, so there was no need for a second-in-command on a Starship.

I stood to the side as the Captain went to his chair to type a complicated string of commands into the mini console there. A light hissing noise sounded as a small door slid open, revealing the Main Database Console. I passed my Guide to Ronan while taking the data storage device from him. I remained where I was as the Captain walked closer to the door. He touched several invisible keys on the wall before gesturing me over. "Please follow me."

It didn't surprise me that the room had additional security measures to prevent unauthorized people from entering. I walked over and followed him into the small room. Starsong had drilled me on how to do the transfer, and I suspected that he also had to mostly shut down the mindlink while I was in here.

"You are correct. I can hear the louder surface thoughts, but nothing more. I cannot detect your emotions either."

Well, at least he was able to hear me if something went wrong or I needed help. Starting a transfer was rather simple though, and it took me only seconds to hook up the cables. I stood up as the orange download light started flashing. It would take it some time to completely transfer over.

The Captain backed out of the room. "We can wait out here until the transfer is completed. Perhaps you would like a tour of the ship while we wait?"

It was a customary polite offer and a way to kill time since a transfer wasn't fast. "Thank you. I would like that. The first ship I served on was much like this one." The fact that I had only previously served on the Tyndel was beside the point.

Ronan passed my Guide back to me, and Captain Lawson looked at it in curiosity. "I have never seen a device like that one before."

He was likely wondering what kind of gadget would be so important or helpful that a Captain would carry it around. And with my new spaceship and supposedly top-of-the-line technology, he was understandably curious. I responded vaguely, "Something like an Analyzer, but more user-friendly. I can give you a demonstration if you wish."

The Captain looked intrigued. "That sounds very interesting. I assume it scans things much like an Analyzer can?"

"That is correct."

He gestured to the Shields Officer's console. "We are docked, so the shields are offline."

Starsong commented, "What he isn't saying, is that they have been having occasional problems with controlling their shields, and he is hoping that your Guide might detect the problem since no one on this ship has a good quality Analyzer."

In that case, I suspected he was about to get a show. Starsong seemed amused by the slight mischievousness in my mind. "I suspect so."

I walked towards the specified console as the Officer there bowed and backed up. Their formality showed that the Captain demanded his Officers to show every potential gesture of respect and subordination in deference to his rank. It probably made him feel more important, lording it over them like that, but it just made me really glad that I had been encouraging my personal crew to be more informal around me.

I tapped a few buttons on my Guide, and it scanned the console with a green light. I turned the screen to the side so it was visible to the Captain who had walked up beside me. The results were clearly displayed with links for images and instructions.

Urgent repair – replace entire length of relay cables at once.

Urgent repair – replace relay cable plug receptacle.

Suggested maintenance – thorough cleaning of all electronic components.

The Captain's eyes were locked onto the words as he undoubtedly committed them to memory. He nodded slowly. "Very impressive. Those repairs were scheduled while we were docked, and I was wondering if it would detect them."

I knew it was a lie, but I was equally sure that those repairs would be done before they left, now that they knew what the problem was. I also had a hunch that his Procurement Officer would be told to figure out what kind of device I had used and what its potential cost was.

I already knew that the Guides would never be offered for sale. Besides, if he was too cheap to pay for at least one person to have a good quality Analyzer and the training to use it, then he wasn't about to pay for something as valuable as a Guide. My 'demonstration' had just saved him a rather large bill from whomever he would have had to hire to locate the problem.

"You could always donate your old Analyzer to him."

'Leave my poor Analyzer alone... He probably wouldn't even know how to turn it on.'

"Very true, although some of his junior crew members do have the training."

'If the Analyzer has to be moved, then I am hanging it in the Bridge.'

"I object to that idea."

'Then it can stay in my room and continue collecting dust...'

The Captain took us on a tour of his spaceship while keeping to areas that were generally better maintained. Even those areas showed that this ship had seen its better days quite some time ago. The Tyndel had been in better shape, and it was going to take more than a few investments and upgrades to bring this ship up to a similar state of repair.