To The Stars

“All done,” he told Jan. “Took most of the night, but worth it. I’ll doze in the engine room. Didn’t put the new brake valves in, no need. Old ones just gummed up. Rinsed out and put back. Work fine. Changed the filters in the lines, too. Solid with gunk. I’d like to bend that Decio over my knee. He never touched a one of them.”

“Maybe I’ll let you do that. After the trip.”

The few hours’ sleep he had grabbed had restored Jan and he enjoyed the climb tip the side of the engine. As he clambered up the sun broke over the hills and shone on the metal so that, even through half-closed eyes, he was in the center of a golden glare. Half-blinded, he went through the hatch and slammed it after him. The air was cool and dry.

“Gear box temperature, tire temperature, brake drum temperature, bearing temperature.”

It wasn’t Otakar who was speaking, but a far sweeter and familiar voice. To think he had forgotten! Alzbeta sat in the co-driver’s seat, with Otakar standing behind her nodding his head happily. Not two feet away sat a pudgy, gray-haired woman, knitting with grim ferocity. The Hradil’s own daughter, watchdog and guardian of virgins. Jan smiled to himself as he slipped into his driver’s chair. Alzbeta glanced up at the motion and her voice died.

“She’s doing absolutely fantastic,” Otakar said. “About ten times brighter and ten times smarter than the last dim dirt-scratcher I tried to teach this job to. If the other girls are anywhere as good, our driver problem is solved.”

“I’m sure they will be,:’ Jan said, hut his eyes were on Alzbeta as he spoke. So close he could almost touch her. Those dark eyes looking deep into his.

“I like this work, too,” she said. Very seriously, her back to the others. Only Jan could see her eyes move up and down his body, followed by the slow wink.

“For the good of the train,” he said, just as seriously. “I am glad that this plan will work. Isn’t that so, aunty?”

The Hradil’s daughter returned only a glare of pure malice before bending back to her knitting. She had been well briefed by her mother. Her presence could be suffered. It was small enough price to pay to have Alzbeta nearby. When he spoke it was to Otakar, but his eyes were on the girl.

“How soon before you think she will be ready to spell you as co-driver?”

“Compared to some of the dummies on these trains, I would say she is ready now. But let her have a day here at least, observing, then perhaps tomorrow she can try a trial run in the seat with me standing by.”

“Sounds good to me. What do you think, Alzbeta?”

“I’m… not sure. The responsibility.”

“The responsibility is not yours, it is the driver’s. I or Otakar will be in this seat, making the decisions and driving the train. Your job will be to help, to keep track of things, to watch the instruments, to follow orders. As long as you stay calm, you can do it. Do you think you can?”

Her jaw was clamped tight and, beautiful as she was, there was more than a little of The Hradil in her when she spoke.

“Yes. I can do it. I know I can do it.”

“Very good. Then it is all arranged.”

When the fusion guns had finished cutting the new Road, Jan personally walked every foot of it, the exhausted tank operator plodding at his side. They walked along the lip, just a meter from the sheer fall into the jungle far below. Despite the breeze the cutting was like an oven, the rock still warm under their feet. Jan knelt and tapped the edge of the rock with a heavy hall peen hammer he carried. A chunk of stone broke away and rattled down the slope and vanished over the drop.

“I don’t like some of this rock. I don’t like it at all,” he said. The tank operator nodded.

“Don’t like it myself. If we had more time I would widen the cut. I’ve done what I can with melt compacting. Hope the lava flow on the surface will penetrate and hold it together.”

“You’re not the only one to hope that. All right, you’ve done all you can now. Get your tanks through and I’ll bring the first train over.” He started away, then turned back. “You’ve dug’ in the guide wire as we planned?”

“Absolute minimum clearance. If it was one more centimeter to the right you would be taking off the top of the engine.”

“Good.” Jan had been thinking about this and he knew what had to be done. There would be protests, but they would follow his orders. His own crew were predictably the first.

“You’ll need an engineer for this job,” Emo said. “I promise not to sleep.”

“I will not need one. The engines will be dead slow all the way, so they can do without your attention for a few minutes. Nor will I need a co-driver or a communications officer for that short a time. Clear the driving compartment. Once we’re past this you’ll learn the job, Alzbeta.” He guided her toward the hatch with his hand on her elbow, ignoring the gasps and raised knitting needles of her chaperone. “Don’t worry.