Blood Impulse

Part 12.4 - INSPECTOR

Homebound Sector, Haven System, Battleship Singularity

It was the first time Alise had witnessed a change on their walk. It started with her stumbling and nearly falling down. Only then did she notice how the floor tile beneath her feet was warped lightly.

The damage only grew more obvious the further they went. Down the corridor, a bulkhead tile was missing altogether, exposing the multicolored wires underneath. A few more steps brought her into a funhouse of distorted metals. Some had been crushed out of shape, others pinched or twisted. A few were torn, a couple singed, and there were three lined up side by side that looked to have been clawed through by an enormous monster. She recognized that damage pattern. Those were the marks left behind by subspace exposure.

Looking down, Alise realized all the deck tiles below her feet now were new. The dark metal walls had a fresher feel and the corridor became more complete as they neared what had been the most damaged portion of the starboard bow.

Only the solitary Marine guard standing outside a marred hatch indicated that anything was odd in this newly rebuilt corridor. He held his rifle at attention, ready to block anyone who did not have clearance to the compartment that housed the starboard bow's repaired support.

"Hey, Alba," the young Marine called, "I don't know if you've heard yet, but we've got an inspector aboard."

Alba stopped where he was. Not good. Due to the recent structural damage, the Singularity likely wouldn't pass inspection. "But Admiral Gives said the ship wouldn't be decommissioned. He and General Clarke agreed."

The Marine shrugged, "Clarke may not be responsible." One of the other two Generals could have sent that inspector. "And the Admiral might not know. CIC said that he still wasn't back aboard."

A terrible feeling settled in the pit of Ensign Alba's stomach. "But if one of the other Generals sent that inspector..."

"Then he or she is probably working for Reeter. And whatever inspection they complete isn't going to be fair." They would undoubtedly lose the ship if that inspector managed to report. "We've been communicating via wireless radios as we search for them, but it's slow going." With so much movement on board from the supply operations, it was near impossible to coordinate a thorough search. "I'm telling everyone I see to keep an eye out."

"I understand." Alba said, moving on. He didn't want to linger here with the Sergeant. She was better off not asking questions, but he could already see them building up. Likely, she was wondering why a Marine had been assigned to guard a seemingly random compartment on the starboard bow.

Cortana wasted no time in breaking the silence that had fallen between them after Callie had run off. "Why are you trying to catch the inspector?" Such people were sworn to do their jobs without bias. They would dutifully report to Command that the ship truly was fit or unfit to serve.

She had such a narrow perspective. Serving in Eagle's Talon, where everything was pretty and perfect, Sergeant Cortana had no idea how corrupt most of Command's forces had become. "We stand now in a portion of the ship that was uninhabitable five days ago," Alba answered. "A structural support failed in the Aragonian Sector. It caused the cascade collapse that destroyed the entire starboard bow and nearly sank the ship. Repairs have been made, but if an inspector saw it, he'd fail the ship and subject her to structural testing."

"That's not a bad thing." If the ship passed testing, then it would be reinstated. That was the law.

"It's bad if you're us," Alba said. They could not afford to have the ship decommissioned, even temporarily. "We'll be defenseless without this ship. Reeter will find some way to kill us all, including you."