Read Starshine: Aurora Rising Book One for Free Online Page B

ARTH, S EATTLE
----
    A LEX TOOK A FEW STEPS back and let her gaze run over the length of the ship.
    She had spent more than three hours the previous evening working the silica-sapphire matrix into the control grid and recalibrating the power outflow, then testing and retesting the entire system—but the results were worth it. While even extensive testing couldn’t replicate real-space conditions, the sims averaged a 39.2% decrease in emission leakage with the new dampener field engaged.
    Already an extremely quiet ship, presenting a sleek, subtle profile that shrugged off seeker pings like water down a sloped roof, her stealth level might now be unmatched. She wasn’t invisible to sensors, not altogether. But she would be damn close.
    A self-satisfied smile grew on her lips. Part of her mind ticked through the list in her head to ensure all was as it should be, any issues had been addressed and she was prepped to fly. The other part giggled silently in pleasure at the beautiful creature which hung before her. The new f-graphene alloy muted the reflective characteristics of the hull, giving the Siyane a dangerous, sinister appearance. That suited her just fine.
    Her reverie was interrupted by Charlie coming around the rear of the hull to stand beside her.
    “Everything checks out. I believe you knew it would, but thanks for letting me pretend to do a little work.”
    She grinned and elbowed him lightly in the side. He was right of course. She understood the intimate details of every subsystem far better than he did. But his job was making sure starships operated correctly; he had checklists for each subsystem and methodical processes to confirm their proper functioning. It was simply good practice for the ship to regularly undergo a thorough operational review—particularly after installing substantive upgrades, which she had most certainly done.
    “A pleasure doing business with you, as always. No idea when I’ll be back, but I’ll let you know when I know.”
    “Yes, ma’am. Safe travels.”
    As soon as he had left she jogged up the extended ramp to the open airlock hatch and headed straight for the cockpit. She had earlier confirmed the food supply delivery and stored her clothes and personals below. Nothing left to do but leave.
    She settled into the supple leather cockpit chair, and with a thought the HUD came to life. The Evanec screen displayed the formal communication with the spaceport’s VI interface.
    EACV-7A492X to Olympic Regional Spaceport Control:  Departure sequence initiation requested Bay L-19
    ORSC to EACV-7A492X:  Departure sequence initiated Bay L-19
    The docking platform whose clamps held the ship slid toward the interior of the spaceport. It then became a lift and rose to the roof along with dozens of other lifts in the stacked rings of the facility. All departures occurred above the ceiling of the skycar airlanes, for obvious reasons.
    The platform locked into position on the rooftop deck. She idled the engine and waited for the clamps to disengage.
    ORSC to EACV-7A492X:  Departure clearance window 12 seconds bearing N 346.48° W
    EACV-7A492X to ORSC:  Departure clearance window accepted
    The platform rotated to the indicated bearing and the clamps retracted. The Siyane hovered for 1.4 seconds before the pulse detonation engine engaged and she was flying over Whidbey Island. Eighteen seconds later she passed into the Strait of Georgia and beyond the purview of ORS Control.
    Outside a spaceport’s airspace and above two kilometers altitude, air traffic was managed by a CU under the guise of the Earth Low Atmosphere Traffic Control System. Its job in the main consisted of ensuring starships and planetary transports didn’t crash into one another. It was a task uniquely suited for the raw processing power of a centralized synthetic construct, and the CU performed it flawlessly.
    She veered west. The coast receded then disappeared from the stern visual screen and the Pacific Ocean stretched