Old Core
They had filled two sleds with the material cleared from the old core’s top chamber. Win Ton and Kara had perforce led this expedition, working steadily after they lowered the remote into the deep core.
When Chernak brought the second sled back, Kara declared a tea break and the three of them went out into the access hall to open the box Clarence had packed for them.
Win Ton got out the vacuum bottle and mugs while Kara opened the pack of handwiches, and Chernak leaned against the wall, frowning at the images the remote had uploaded to the tablet.
“I was too large to work in that space before I came out of creche,” she said, accepting a handwich with a nod.
“Yes, but we had known that,” Win Ton said, pouring tea. “Kara and I are for the deep regions, after the upper room is cleared.”
“As for that…” Chernak pushed away from the wall and stalked back into the core, tablet in one hand, handwich in the other.
Win Ton held out a mug of tea.
Kara accepted it, and gave him a handwich.
Both settled cross-legged on the deck and fell to. Kara had taken off her protective headgear, and her hair, loosened from the knot on top of her head, fell in damp snarls to her shoulders. Except for the area protected by the work glasses, her face was grimy.
Win Ton sighed and sipped tea, certain he presented no more beguiling a picture.
“This is rather daunting,” Kara said. She had the second tablet balanced on her knee, and was bent over it. “There may not be room for two of us.”
“May I see?” Win Ton asked, extending a hand. She surrendered the tablet, and took up her mug while he frowned at the screen in his turn.
“We might manage it,” he said, “if we each go to a side and clear to the center.” He squinted at the image, which was dark, even given the remote’s lights.
“There is debris underfoot, which will have to be cleared. If I go down first, and the pulley lowered behind me—”
“I can do it,” Chernak announced, arriving largely, handwich gone, and tablet in her belt.
“Do what, one wonders,” Kara said, pointing at the mug that had been filled for her.
Chernak came down onto her haunches, picked up the mug and sipped.
“It was agreed that the top floor would be cleared first, then the second. How, if they were to be cleared simultaneously? You have made enough room that I can finish the upper chamber. If you will both take the under-level, I will operate the pulley and clear what is left above. We might then complete the mission ahead of schedule.”
“I will certainly welcome the end of this chore,” Kara said, holding her mug out. Win Ton hefted the bottle and poured tea.
“We will not finish today,” he said, refreshing his own mug, while Chernak reached to the pack and liberated another handwich. “However, we might finish tomorrow, instead of the day after.”
“I received the impression that soonest done was the preference,” Kara murmured.
“As I did.”
Win Ton returned his attention to the tablet.
“Allow me the honor of descending first and clearing the space beneath the hatch, around the ladder. When there is sufficient room for Kara to join me, we will set lights, so that we may see what stands before us.” He glanced at each of his companions in turn.
“Is that agreeable?”
“I’m agreed,” Kara told him, draining her mug. She stood, and pointed a stern finger down at the opened pack.
“Chernak, there is a handwich left, and it is yours. We cannot have you fainting from want.”
“Thank you.”
Chernak grabbed it up and rose to her feet.
Win Ton repacked the tea things and rose, not quite so nimbly as he might once have done, and the three of them went back into the core.