So she got right to the point and asked them to turn the structure on. They faltered. They couldn’t do it. They wanted to obey her, but a barrier stood in their way. She asked to see what blocked them, and she knew it was only data, but she could feel the answer as much as know it, and it felt real, like a perfectly recorded memory playing back in exhaustive detail.
She confirmed she had all the information she needed, then asked to be released.
In a shorter but equally intense rush of pain, her Imprints flew out of the machine and up her arm, returning to their default formation. The metal sleeve opened and she stumbled back.
Griffith caught her, keeping her upright until she found her footing. He turned her around, gripping her arms. “Adequin.”
She blinked the watery haze from her eyes and focused onto him. “I’m okay,” she assured, though her voice came out haggard.
“What happened?”
She breathed heavily, letting her mind catch up and process what she’d learned. Of course it wouldn’t be as simple as building a star.
“The station can’t connect to the power source,” she said, turning away from Griffith to face the others. “An expulsion system overloaded when the last power source collapsed.”
Cavalon stared, eyes wide. “Collapsed, like … supernova’d?”
Adequin shrugged. “I guess. It exploded, and the mass had to be expelled or it would’ve taken out the entire structure. There’s a fail-safe for that exact purpose, but it was damaged during the emission. The vent is still open, and until it’s properly sealed again, the station can’t turn on.”
“Where is this ‘vent’ located?” Mesa asked.
“On the hull.”
Oddly, Cavalon immediately sat on the ground, legs crossed under him. Adequin turned a confused look onto him, but he didn’t seem to notice.
She looked back at Mesa. “Can you bring up the schematic labeled ‘imens ma’ertis’？”
“How—” Mesa began, but then cut herself short, seeming to dismiss her curiosity with an effort. Adequin followed as the Savant marched to the terminal. She brought up the main structure’s schematic, and Adequin recognized the layout from what she’d seen inside the mainframe.
“There, that’s where it is.” She pointed to the spot and Mesa enlarged the area. Adequin tilted her head to get her bearings. “That’s the…”
“Outward-facing side,” Mesa said.
“Do we have to fly out there to reach it?”
“I don’t believe so.” Mesa zoomed in even farther, narrowing in on the corridor that arced around the power source. “There is an access hatch here, which leads outside the hull.”
“Right, I remember now.” She nodded as the details of the information she’d collected from the mainframe solidified. “I can get us there.”
She walked over to Cavalon, still sitting on the ground in the middle of the room, both arms wrapped around his midsection.
“Cav?”
He looked up at her, the weight of his helmet lolling his head back with a light bounce. “Hey, sir.”
“Just having a bit of a sit?”
“I figured I’d rest while I could,” he said dolefully. “We’re going on another EVA, aren’t we?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay.” He looked back down, nodding slowly.
She offered her hand and he gripped her forearm, then she pulled him to his feet. “Can you tell me what we need to make the repair?” she asked.