That shut Dak up, fast. Sealed in the escape capsule, he'd had no clue as to what had befallen. He stared in shocked horror as his senior officer continued.

    'They spared me so they could pump me for security codes and information,' Jensen fabricated. He paused, made a show of staring at his hands, which were abraded and raw from his constant twisting at the ties that lashed him to the crew chair. 'I talked some, mostly as a ploy. The skip-runners thought I was scared and didn't view me as a threat. They tied me less carefully than they might have, and I managed to work free.' Now Jensen raised his eyes and stared ingenuously at his engineer. 'We need to blow the ship,' he confided. 'Take out those skip-runners before they have a chance to use my codes against the Fleet, or to make off with Kildare as a prize.'

    'They were going to leave me to suffocate!' Dak burst out in a fury.                                                -

    Nervelessly, Jensen played along. 'No doubt.' He allowed a moment for the unpleasantness of that concept to register, then gently prodded for what he wanted. 'I need you, Dak. We're stripped of all energy sources but that cracked coil unit, and somehow we need to destroy Kildare.'

    Dak's face grew thoughtful, almost boyish as he considered the problem. 'Shouldn't be too difficult,' he surmised, his knobby fingers tapping his agitation. 'The crack's making the unit unstable anyway. All we need to do is play a current through it. Should create a critical imbalance on short order.' He ruminated for a moment, chewing his lip. 'Trouble is, once I start the sequence, there won't be any faibsafe. Kildare will explode, and nothing we do could stop the process.'

    'You'd rather die at the hands of the skip-runners?' Jensen said brutally.

    Dak shrugged. 'Rather not die at all, truth to tell. But I guess this is our best chance.'

    Jensen settled back with a show of relief that was not entirely feigned. q'11 see you commended in my report, for courageous duty to the Fleet.'

    For a moment Dak looked wistful. 'My room would appreciate that. If we ever get through this alive.'

    Jensen nodded. As his back settled against the console of the escape capsule, he made a point of wincing over his cracked

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