Jarvis closed his eyes and thumped the wall of his useless ship. With a grunt, he marched into the laboratory and leaned against the doorframe, studying the plasma cannon’s exposed innards. He folded his arms across his chest and cleared his throat. “Cecile, how’s your work progressing?”
A curse echoed off the walls, and as silence rushed to fill the space, Cecile’s head crested the workbench. “You weren’t supposed to bother me for a couple of days while I performed my diagnostics.”
“That’s why you got five.”
“Has it been that long?”
Jarvis nodded as he retrieved an implement from the bench. “Based on where you are, I’ll assume you’re poking at my engine.”
Cecile snatched the tool from Jarvis, returning to the opening. “I’m following your standing orders to get this bucket off the ground.”
He reached down and pulled her clear of the hatch. Jarvis’s thumb pointed at the workbench as he leaned toward her. “While that’s an important goal, your top priority was repairing and replicating that cannon.”
With a shrug, Cecile waved her tool at the weapon scattered over her table. “Five days…?”
“You’re in your element. I’m not surprised you lost track of time.” He stepped to the workbench, tapping the device. “Now tell me why you’ve abandoned the cannon.”
“I haven’t deserted it.” Cecile swiped her eyes as her shoulders sagged. She hopped onto a stool and pulled an implement from her belt. She stuck the tip into the chamber and adjusted the wires there. “Whenever I wear out a mystery, I need to sink my teeth into something new.”
Jarvis plucked the tool from her and patted the chassis. “Have you repaired the overload?”
“Not yet.”
“We’ve successfully used the other experimental weapon in three raids.”
Cecile reclaimed the device and tapped it against the hollowed-out cannon. “There’s a difference between theoretical and operational. And given your proximity to the thing, I thought you’d appreciate that distinction.”
Jarvis wrung his hands. “When will we receive more cannons?”
“I’m not sure. While I’ve isolated the cause of their self-detonation, I haven’t corrected it. But if you’re eager to tempt suicide, I’ll produce flawed weapons for you.”
Jarvis’s palm slammed against his forehead while gritting his teeth. “If you’ve identified it, why isn’t it fixed?”
“Whoever designed the original was careless.”
“Why’s that?” Jarvis asked, sitting down at the workbench. “The folks back home are pretty smart.”
Cecile shook her head and dove into the open access panel. “Even the smartest people make mistakes, especially with a prototype...