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Ramsey taps the screen, and a diagram appears.
Ulof scratches the scruff of his chin. “It looks like all it needs is to get plugged back in.”
Ramsey squints at the screen. “What could have happened?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Ulof chuckles. “Rats get into the Tomb every now and again, and this time, they decided to cause trouble.”
“I don’t know,” Ramsey says. “This looks suspicious.”
“Speak not of suspicion,” I order. “Once we fix the problem, we can figure out what happened.”
“What if the arm can’t be fixed?” Ulof asks.
“Of course it can be fixed,” I insist.
“But if it can’t?”
“Someone would have to go in manually to fix the wires.”
“Someone? Which one of us could fit?”
I was hoping he wouldn’t state the obvious and make the situation any more real than it had to be. I look at the ten inch opening the arm is meant to go through to do repairs. Not a single man would be able to squeeze through.
We’ve already fallen so far in the eyes of our people. This mission is the only thing we have to redeem ourselves, and other than to press the button telling Tempest the planet is ready, there is no way for us to communicate with them.
“Jacek will fix the arm,” I insist.
Long minutes pass until morning turns to midday. I pace the room, anxious for answers, hoping that none of my men would betray their sacred homeland.
Into the room steps Jacek, his face dripping with sweat.
“I was out on a hunt but came as soon as I heard.”
“What do you make of this?” I gesture to the arm.
He dons magnifying headgear and begins his examination, taking tools from the wall panel to inspect the device.
“Well?” I say impatiently.
“This will take time for me to work through.”
“Is it fixable?”
“Unclear.”
“What caused it?”
He shoves his fingers through his hair, exhaling a terse breath. “It’s hard to say.”
I watch as he meticulously works the tools, disassembling the arm and inspecting each element.
Finally, Jacek takes his headgear off, places it on the counter, and turns to face me.
“This could take a moon to fix, if it is fixable at all.”
“What about the terraformer?”
Jacek looks over at the wall panels. “So Eddard speaks truly about the arm and the terraformer?”
