Two of the longest weeks in recorded history, I was sure.

That was how long it took to “batten down the hatches”, as the shipping saying went. Botony was closed, the labs were closed, the living quarters were finally closed. But it had cost, oh how it had cost. The Magellan would never be the same.

The night after Lissa had been hit, Carla had. She had assured me in strident tones that it would take months for her hair to grow back, and yes it was a big deal. I had posted a guard inside Milla's quarters; it didn't take, well, an engineer, to know where Mouse would strike next.

Somehow she still got to her; now Milla and Carla both had a new found fondness for hats. Two days later, certain showers in the male gym area spit water tinted blue after a slight delay.

My own blue tinge was just now starting to fade, after almost two weeks of showers with a caustic soap. I knew what it meant; it meant she knew, or knew well enough from my own personality. Several others had been marked with the scarlet letter, as it were. A few were even indignant about it.

Most looked guilty... and worried.

I wouldn't care to bet that the cameras Oddball used were being used only by Oddball present. I bet Mouse was there, watching, laughing her fool ass off.

Now the females among the crew were looking over their shoulders, and testing their own showers each day before using them. The unease and stress were clear. Mouse looked omnipotent, or nearly so... and I looked incompetent, or nearly so. I wouldn't even argue if anyone stood up and screamed the accusation outright.

I'd probably agree, even if the crew wanted to replace me as captain.

But for all my own failure, there had been precious little rumbling of that yet. The real underground rumors and rumblings were far worse. Many in the crew were speaking openly (though never in my hearing) of 'punishing' Mouse.

How in the hell would we manage to punish our chief engineer without turning her further against us? Hadn't we 'punished' her first? How could we possibly stop Oddball from doing something like this again without Mouse? The other engineers from prior generations weren't even close to as brilliant as Mouse was, if their own anecdotal evidence and IQ tests were to be believed.

I'd felt I had to check those during the week, no matter how busy I was. Any sort of advantage I could find, I needed. But the prior engineers weren't much help, even if I were to request an emergency thawing. Provided I could make a case for such a thawing; Mouse hadn't in any way threatened the ship. And without that, Oddball wouldn't sign off on the action.

I felt like Oddball was getting his jollies from all this too, somehow. At least he was actually actively trying to help now, working on calculating how Mouse had blinded him, and ways to scan for bio-signatures throughout the ship that Mouse hadn't already figured out and disabled.

So far, no dice there, but it was a far cry from the first week. The first week Oddball did nothing at all that I didn't expressly ask for... almost as if it were paralyzed into inactivity. Some old archives in the history files had said some computers did that when faced with a problem they needed all their CPU power for... but that didn't really make sense. Oddball was a true AI, with more computing power than humanity had been able to make purely on it's own. It was more intelligent than Mouse, from an IQ test standpoint. So why would it freeze up like a windows computer running DOS and trying to compute the true numeric value of infinity?

That made me nervous; was our problem with Mouse so unsolvable that even the strongest computer humanity ever had access to couldn't solve it? And if not, what exactly did cause Oddball to freeze up like that?

I suppose it didn't matter; it was humanities' problem, for all that it was caused in part by Oddball itself. We could and would solve it. Preferably without bloodshed.

For now though, she was still at large. We had searched large areas of the ship, laying down sensors and hiding more; we didn't want to risk her hiding out in places we'd already been. None of those sensors had detected anything or been disabled so far, so I assumed they were clear.

I had a few private theories on where she was. One was that she was hanging out in the main drive section of engineering, which was a confusing warren of old machinery and tight hallways. Even our bravest explorers got lost regularly there, at least without some outside assistance. The old maps were all but useless there. Too much old tinkering and building.

Engineers were crazy; even the best of them.

The other option was the center of the ship, where the ship's gravity did not reach, in all the spaces not covered by cameras or sensors directly. There were no shortage of places to hide there for any length of time if you didn't mind your bone and muscle atrophy.

That's what was going to happen today. An organized search of the areas outside of the normal existence of the ship. Seth, Joe, Guido, and I were going to suit up and search that inner area in teams. I hoped we would find her today.

Because if we didn't, I'd need to get far more people to search the main drive section. The people I had searching now were ones I knew wouldn't hurt Mouse if we found her. Some of the people I'd have to include are not likely to be as forgiving. I hated the mere thought of having to worry not only for the searchers, but the one being searched for.

Even knowing my quarter's vents were welded shut with sensors in place to detect tampering, and the door locked with Mouse no longer granted entry, I still inspected my toothbrush and paste, as well as the water running from the sink in the bathroom. I did not need another application of blue pigment, or something strange spread upon my teeth.

Checking my clothes was a must too. All clear, on all counts.

The trip to the cafeteria was uneventful; I was running early which meant the hallways were empty. There had been no calls to wake me, the first time in weeks; I was just in the habit of waking early now... or not sleeping at all.

The cafeteria itself was almost empty; only Marion and Eric present. Eric's blue was actually closer to fading than mine was; a testament to how furiously one scrubbed when showering. Marion slid a plate of carrot muffins over as I stepped up to the counter without a word. I knew they were carrot muffins because that was what we had a surplus of this week.

I wish I could say tell Marion our food supply was out of danger, but that would be a lie. Even if everyone took shifts and just watched the garden, we wouldn't be able to watch all of it well enough. Not if Mouse decided to get serious. Luckily enough it seemed she didn't want to.

I was beginning to wish she'd just make her real move though; all this suspense was killing me.

I looked down in surprise when my questing hand found no more muffins to consume; I hadn't even tasted the things, and I liked carrots. Sigh. With a shrug I downed the last of my water and handed the dishes back to Marion.

Sure I was still early, but the sooner we started, the sooner we could find our wayward crew-member and bring her in. No one had even seen a glimpse of her during her admittedly malicious pranks, which meant no one knew if she had healed correctly, or if she had aggravated the surgery in some fatal way.

I'd rather she be pranking us than dead and rotting in some out of the way corner where the ship sensors did not reach. At least Oddball hadn't declared her dead; that would pretty much ruin someone else's day. Or life.

I think I'd rather space the entire damn computing core than allow it to operate on one of us again.

“Yo cap, good morning.”

Apparently I wasn't the only one ready to get started early. Joe and Seth were here already, with Joe acting mute and greeting with a silent wave as usual, and Seth speaking for both of them. Though in what movie inspired accent or slang this week would be anyone's guess. I couldn't even identify them all. The location was of course the primary inside hatch. Though we didn't need to be, we would be suited up for safety, and they were inspecting the suits.

Of course we couldn't get going until Guido arrived; I had demanded teams myself; no one left alone when searching for Mouse. Small as she was, she could still overwhelm any lone person, and I couldn't be sure she wouldn't hurt them somehow. I simply could not take the chance.

“yo cap, snap out of it.”

Concentration broken, I turned to Seth. He looked as serious as I had seen him. Neither he nor Joe had any hints of blue.

“What?”

“You're worrying too much cap. Got to cool off, stay frosty. You can't let it get to you; the stress will eat you alive.”

Behind him Joe nodded along.

“I can handle it.”

Maybe I couldn't, but a captain shouldn't appear weak after all. He gave me a surprisingly shrewd once over.

“Maybe cap... but how are you sleeping?”

I had no doubt he slept like a baby. They both likely did.

I was saved from having to respond and lie by Guido showing up. Right on time. He wasn't blue tinted either.

“Good morning.”

“Morning. So how are the suits?”

Joe spoke up for the first time today.

“Perfectly fine. All four suits check out.”

Wait.

“You checked all the suits? Even ours?”

“Yes, we wanted to make sure they were in good order and free of any sabotage. So we simply showed up early and checked all of them.”

“I am quite capable of checking my own suit.”

Seth chose to be insulting.

“Yeah, but we do it better. Don't want you missing something. That way if you die, it's all our fault and we get lynched.”

I still gave my suit a quick once over without seeming to. Just in case. I didn't like what this job was making me turn into. I found it hard to trust anymore... I could only hope I was the only one it was doing it too. Too much of this, and none of us would ever trust each other again.

I was pretty sure Joe at the very least, noticed me running the quick inspection. But he didn't say anything. And we all suited up with the ease of long practice. Though I was sure Guido didn't go EVA much. Probably no more than the minimum.

We locked the door behind us, using my code and nanites. One of the few perks of being the captain, I could lock anything and anyone out, unless I was declared unfit. Maybe the chief engineer could reverse it... but our chief engineer was currently unfit for duty. And the doctor could possibly do it by declaring me unfit first, but that would take a hearing.

Anyone in here with us, should not be able to get out that way. Of course, that only left an estimated hundred ways to enter or exit. And it was out job to check every single one.

…..........................................................

I watched captain traitor seal the first old hatch that no one ever used. He was giving the job due diligence, I had to admit. Welding it shut AND welding sensors for motion, our signal bearing nanites as well as a camera microphone and motion sensor. All of this was also welded in place, and covered by a fairly tough tamper proof cage while Guido played lookout.

A bit bulky but I approved. Of course there were ways to bypass it, but any bypass would result in at least one of the sensors going off. There were ways to defeat that as well, but it was too much effort for the gain; there were other entrances. I doubt even that bastard son of alien technology knew them all.

I doubt my old mentor even knew of the entrance I liked to use, for the simple expedient that there was no way he would ever fit in it. I discovered it by accident when upgrading some wiring to one of the newer motors regulating the modular function of some of our cargo spaces.

Some of our cargo bays for certain types of cargo (like the remains of the small comet worked on by Seth and Joe) could expand in size, or contract to better hold cargo; shifting cargo could actually generate a fair amount of movement of the ship itself, which we would need to burn costly fuel to correct.

The design was supposed to be a way to offset the problem; and just outside of the home solar system, it had proven flawed. The motors had proven insufficient to 'hugging' truly weighty cargo, and had a tendency to jam due to the dust and grit that often floated free in the empty spaces.

To further add insult to injury, the amount of motion generated by rampaging cargo had been overestimated. It really wasn't the problem the first gen builders had thought it might be.

So the old motors had to be replaced in favor of an encapsulated system which was smaller... and which also didn't work, due to the same dust. And then the entire system was decommissioned. It hadn't been used in my lifetime.

So, a little known fact; if you could ignore the crap floating around and ignore the feelings of claustrophobia and faint stirrings of panic, you could work your way through the old motor cowling and then into one of the fuel feeds. Which led into the engineer service tunnels behind, and into the main drive section.

All you had to do was be smaller than any human had a right to be, and know that the entire mechanism was disabled. Well that or balls of steel, and I was fresh out of those. They were probably in a jar that Oddball kept somewhere to gloat over. I had however made sure to disable one entire engine from the loop, decommissioned or not.

The problem was I wasn't sure how much longer I would be able to use it myself. I was growing.

Oh no, I wasn't finally hitting a growth spurt and gaining height; that would have been too easy, and a silver lining. I was growing... bumpy. I don't think I was gaining weight.... but my chest was killing me. All jiggly and maddening itch. And my butt, well, if it continued to balloon out there was no way I'd be able to make it through this hidden entrance of mine; I'd almost gotten stuck on my way in this morning.

I suppose I could hollow out the fuel line, but I was loathe to do that; we might need it later.

I had a pretty good idea why Claire used to ask if she looked fat in her clothes now though; cold comfort indeed.

The good news is I had only come this way to check the opposition; they were finally getting going on the offense, after weeks of being defensive. I still don't think they figured out how I managed to 'shave' Lissa and her chief hench-witch, but I was pretty sure they figured out the blue additive to the showers.

A great prankster once told me to never pull the same trick twice, and I was sticking to it; which was why the girl's badge of shame would be different than the blue man group's. It was hard to think of something at the same time brutal yet harmless, that would cause no lasting damage and not interfere with their jobs.

Besides, I hadn't actually cracked the code on the voter list yet; I wasn't sure what Oddball had used, but it was something I had little experience with. For all my skills I wasn't an experienced cryptologist.

I had acted on the guys mostly out of rage and spite, and I wasn't sorry for it; I was pretty sure who had voted against me there; the women were more guesswork than I was comfortable with. I was pretty sure Lissa and her hench-witches had voted against me, but what of Claire? What of Marion? What of Brun?

I had a feeling they could have gone either way, but at the same time I didn't want to know. I don't think I could ever really forgive the people on that list. Some of them were pure unmitigated jerks, sure. Some of them did not like me at all, and that was mutual; those people I could sort of understand voting against me.

But my friends? Those I trusted, voting away my identity as if it were something shameful or worthless, to be washed away by blood and tears for the sake of convenience? For their own convenience?

How could anyone forgive such a thing?

I heard them in the hallways and in their private spots, thinking they were safe from prying eyes and ears. They dared talk of trust; of how they would never be able to trust me again after the crimes I've pulled. What the hell sort of nonsense is that? Do they really not realize who broke trust with whom? If not, I feel honor bound to show them.

Still, it wouldn't do to target the wrong people.

But for now, I was gathering information. It seemed as if, true to form, they were focusing on making sure I did not double back and get behind them as they tried to run me to ground. Captain traitor was right in that the main drive section of the Magellan should be dealt with last; it was undeniably my turf.

I had both worked and played there since I was six, after all. No one currently active knew that particular section better than I; not even the other engineers. There, no one could match me. There, I could finally get some full measure of revenge against my betrayers and tormentors.

I was finally getting into the swing of using my altered body, having spent most of my enforced time off just learning how to move again. The number Oddball had done on me was surprisingly thorough, but confidence was slowly returning. I had had more time than I expected, but less than I needed. I would have to start layering my traps tonight.

And I would be hampered by the fact that I wouldn't be able to place them indiscriminately, or I'd be keeping the engineers who were seeing to the well being of the ship from doing their jobs. Which in itself limited the number of places I could make my first stand.

Squeezing my body, a traitor all it's own, though through no fault of it's own back through my make-shift entrance was even more claustrophobic than normal... there was a moment when I truly thought I was stuck. A vigorous shimmy got me through.

I needed a shower.

Captain traitor thought he had the residential hub locked down... and he did. He had all the vents and tubes locked, welded shut, and sensor warded. Both the quarters and corridors both. However the residential hub was not the only place to get a shower on the Magellan; nor was it the only place to get a good night's sleep.

Near one of the old, now unused outer hatches, one that used to be one of the new and most used outer hatches when the ship was being constructed, there was an old decommissioned infirmary. The place was actually a storeroom converted to the purpose for the treatment of work related accidents.

At the time, those people working furiously to save humanity tended to cut their suit or crush their limbs with power tools due to a rather normal tendency to hurry. A surprising number of those tended to survive, for all that they needed replacements. Eyes bursting from the lack of pressure was common, but replacements were at the time, easy to implant.

All the medications and equipment (as well as the replacement eyes) had of course long since been removed or recycled, but the beds an other anomalous amenities were still in place, for all that the place was listed as a storeroom. Having one's mother as chief medical officer for years had some benefit, after all.

It had the added benefit of being off the beaten path, though it was on the list for tonight's sweep, which meant today was the last day I could use it. Luckily it was only one of my bolt holes. It wasn't even the only one with a shower, though this one was the most comfortable one left.

Finally arriving, I pulled myself through the vent and replaced it, adding my own sensors to it. Then I made sure the door was locked and sealed, and added my alarm there too; it would chime extra loud if attempts were being made to open it...then delay the order for two minutes, more than long enough for me to get away, provided they didn't know for sure that I was here.

If they did, they would simply seal off the entire wing; that way when I tried to run they could track me down. They would likely do it by flooding the vents with radioactive dust; easily treatable, it would allow them to track me. The only reason they didn't just flood the ship now was that cleanup afterward would be terrible.

One section could be done; the entire ship, and the dust would cause illness or other problems before we could clean it all up.

The shower was almost too hot, and very warm. The tang of rust from the old tank (the real reason this was a great bolt hole) was almost gone now, and the water almost clear. It worked to get me and my clothes clean... or clean-ish at any rate, in the case of my clothes. Yes I knew how to use water and soap to wash my clothes, which was a must because I no longer had access to the normal sonic machines we used.

I didn't really want to wash clothes by hand, but it was either that or go naked. The outfit shirt, shorts, and overall combo I was using was the last one to fit me. It had been a little loose before. The normal clothes I'd grabbed at the start of this were beginning to get a little tight.

And the shirts... well this one was the only one that fit and didn't chafe. I wasn't sure what it was made of, but it was soft. I needed to get some more; a heist was in order. I could also take care of Claire's punishment while there, provided she was on the list. I hadn't cracked that list in two weeks, and I was beginning to get impatient again. I'd also heard her talking when she thought no one else could be listening in on her conversations.

Claire was as good a target as any.