And then his chance came, as so many chances do when one no longer wants
them. The Second Officer met him at the beginning of one watch, saying
worriedly, "Bartol, old Rugel's sick--not fit to be on his feet. Do you
think you can hold down this shift alone, if I drop in and give you a
hand from time to time?"
"I think so," Bart said, carefully not overemphasizing it. The Second
Officer, by routine, spent half of his time in the drive room, and half
his time down below in Maintenance. When he left, Bart knew he would
have at least half an hour, uninterrupted, in the drive room. He ripped
open the panel, located the wires and hesitated; he didn't quite dare to
cut them outright.
He jerked one wire loose, frayed the other with a sharp claw until it
was almost in shreds and would break with the first surge of current,
pulled two more connections loose so that they were not making full
contact. He closed the panel and brushed dust over it, and when the
Second Officer came back, Bart was at his own station.
As Antares fell toward them in the viewport, he found himself worrying
about Mentorians. They would be in cold sleep, presumably in a safe part
of the ship, behind shielding, or Montano would have made provisions for
them. Still, he wished there were a way to warn Meta.
He was not on watch when they came into the planetary field of
Lharillis, but when he came on shift, he knew at once that the trouble
had been located. The panel was pulled open, the exposed wires hanging,
and Ringg was facing old Rugel, shouting, "Listen, Baldy, I won't have
you accusing me of going light on my work! I checked those panels eight
days ago! Tell me who's going to be opening the panels in here anyhow?"
"No, no," Rugel said patiently, "I'm not accusing you of anything, only
being careless, young Ringg. You poke with those buzzing instruments and
things, maybe once you tear loose some wires."
Bart remembered he wasn't supposed to know what was going on. "What's
this all about?"
It was Rugel who answered. "The radiation counter--the planetary one,
not the one we use in space--is out of order. We don't even need it this
landing--there's no radiation on Lharillis. If it were the landing gear,
now, that would be serious. I'm just trying to tell Ringg--"
"He's trying to say I didn't check it." Ringg was not to be calmed.
"It's my professional competence--"