Using controlled bursts of nitrogen, the Mahboula wheezed into position, 300 meters from the pale leviathan. Her thrusters coughed unevenly, her old bulkheads groaning. At the controls, Tereq chewed his lip, his brow furrowed in concentration.
With the little ice he’d mined so far, he’d be lucky to break even. Nearly half the hauler’s size, this chunk might finally make his three-month run profitable.
“Oya, big bastat, come on now…” the old miner muttered, lining up the targeting lasers. The shard was too big to fit in the Mahboula’s hold, but could be towed using grapple hooks. In his reticule, Tereq centered the pip on the white-blue mass, its edges caught in weak sunlight and framed by black.
He fired the grapples; a dull shudder ran through the ship as four hooks spat from the launcher trailing cables. Seven seconds later, the nickel-titanium hooks speared deep into the frozen behemoth. Sweat beading on his brow, Tereq reengaged the thrusters to match the slab’s spin, reeling in the cables.
The two objects circled – a slow orbital waltz, until they found the same beat and drew closer. Tereq leaned toward the screen; the ice held steady while the stars and the black slid past.
A bleating alarm broke his focus. The Mahboula’s outdated collision-detection software gave Tereq enough time to yell a surprised curse before an unnoticed shard slammed into her flank.
The ship lurched to the side, throwing him violently in his harness. The tethered colossus spun on his screen once more, this time dragging the Mahboula with it.
“Sésata!” Tereq slammed the cable release and sagged back into his seat. The Mahboula was spinning now, he could feel it in his gut before he saw it. Stars dragged themselves in slow arcs across the screen, the frozen mass showing its pale face every few heartbeats like it was mocking him.
When his breath steadied, Tereq unbuckled the harness and checked the damage. Engines, thrusters, comms – still working. Then a soft hiss from the port wall froze him. His heart skipped; he scrolled through the readouts…
CABIN PRESSURE: 0.38 atm — AUTO SEAL: FAILED
O₂: 7.2%
“Fuck.” A day. Maybe. Not enough to reach port.
Tereq sighed, his head hanging. “Old kopeng, your time come, ya?” He blinked, shook his head, chuckled.
He sat back down, keyed in some commands on the vid console.
CALLING: ASHA
Static filled the cabin before the line found its target. Thirty seconds later, the screen came alive – Asha, mid-thirties, hair tied back, a tired smile just for him. The cramped apartment behind her was cluttered with toys and clothes. She didn’t speak. Old Belter custom: the one who calls talks first, in case the delay steals the moment.
“Kora, mi girl!” He matched her smile with one of his own.
Three seconds to Ceres, three back. Normally the delay was a pain; now he was grateful for the silence between. He studied the tired joy in her face — the new-mother bags under her eyes, the easy pride in her grin.
“Oya, Papa!” she beamed. “How you do? Find any good ice? We good here – want see Tovi?”
Asha leaned out of frame, then returned with a chubby baby in a diaper, waving her tiny hand.
Tereq felt his chest tighten. “Eh, how’s mi Tovya doing, eh?” He drew a shaky breath. “Grow fast, shenya! I’m good, ya – found one monster ice rock. Big payday this time.”
He thumbed the thrusters; the pale mass steadied in the viewport again.
“Just wanted say I love you. Give Tovkin kiss for me, ya?”
Six seconds later Asha smiled, kissed the child’s head. “Love you too, Papa. Get that ice – we see you soon, ya? Be safe.”
He watched them for six more glorious seconds before the screen went dark. His breath caught, then broke into quiet sobs.
A minute later he wiped his face and looked up. The ice was drifting away. With a few deft keystrokes, he locked its coordinates into the autopilot.
Not bothering with his harness, Tereq brought the reactor to full burn. The engines roared, g-forces pressing him deep into the seat.
The frozen mass swelled in the viewport. Tereq smiled.
“Mi belta, sleep slow…stars dey spin, an’ rock still grow…”
The impact atomized the Mahboula, shattering the ice into a glittering storm of shards.
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