Repairs weren't going well. And Beka Valentine was rapidly losing patience. Finally, she threw her nanowelder across the room. Hearing the clank gave her a sense of enormous satisfaction. If only temporarily. "O.K. I need a break."
She stomped out to the kitchen. There wasn't much in the way of foodstuffs but she did find some crackers and juice. She quickly downed the snack. "Right. I know I have to get the repairs done but damn—I wish Harper were here." She put her head down on the counter and sighed in frustration. "Did we even win? I don't know for sure. I'm guessing we did because if we didn't I'd probably be dead by now. Just more food for the Spirit of the Abyss. Still, it'd be nice to know for certain. Damn. I hate this. Just get a hold of yourself. It'll be all right. It has to be."
She got up and checked the comm. Miraculously it still worked. She could try and hail someone. Should she? Some things were still working. Not the slipstream drive, unfortunately. Beka could send out a distress signal. Risky, though. It would be just her luck to be rescued by a mortal enemy. Better not. At least for now. Beka sighed and went back to the tedious repairs.
The Andromeda was hunting; hunting for its first officer. And one aboard was hunting for his love with fear and trepidation. Rhade wanted to find Beka alive and well. That went without saying. At the same time he knew things were over between them. She was going to pack her things and leave now no matter what he did or said. And he wasn't looking forward to it.
"Hey, boss, how far do you think we should go before we change direction?"
Rhade considered Harper's question. "Assuming that her slipstream drive was damaged and she was forced to travel in normal space like we are, I'd guess she still managed to make it pretty far. So we'll keep searching all the systems we can find here and then go out to desolate areas. Something tells me that Beka might be stranded in a remote corner."
Harper nodded. "That fits the profile of rotten Valentine luck. Until I came along, of course."
Rhade grinned. "No credit for Rev?"
"Well, maybe a little. But he's got the backing of the Divine. With me, it's all in the Seamus Harper, himself. Remember, The Harper is good."
Rhade had to laugh. "I can see why Beka loves you so much. Thanks for reminding me why I like you too."