The Evacuation of Solfilius

The Evacuation of Solfilius - Part Five: Completion

Chapter 13, 18 hours until impact.

Abagail stood still for a few seconds, glancing at the ground. Suddenly, her face began to scrunch up, and after a few seconds, she began to sob uncontrollably.

She walked away towards the ship and sat down, leaning against it. Justin swiftly followed her, sitting down next to her.

"Hey, are you okay?" Justin asked.

"No." Abagail replied. Her voice was breaking up. She was clearly very distressed.

"All the people, the heat, the stress of this job. It's already a lot for me. I can't imagine what it's like for you." Justin continued.

"Yes. It's horrible." Abagail lamented.

A few seconds passed while Abagail cried.

"I like you, Justin. You're easy to get along with. Other people are hard." She added, her voice still heavily broken.

"Is it okay if I put my arm around you?" Justin asked.

Justin thought Abagail might appreciate some physical touch right now, but he wasn't sure. Justin thought it might be a helpful offer.

Abagail nodded in response to Justin's offer.

Justin put his arm around Abagail, putting his hand on her far shoulder. Their space suits made their arrangement a little awkward, but it was comfortable like this.

They sat still for a while. Abagail began to calm down quickly. Justin simply being there with her was a big help in relieving her stress. Eventually, Abagail got up, Justin followed.

"I have work to do. Thank you, Justin." Abagail said, somewhat bluntly.

Although she was still upset and had tears rolling down her cheeks, she was now smiling. It seemed like Justin had helped a lot.

"Oh, are you sure you're ready to go back? I know we're kind of in a rush and all, but you could sit with me a little longer if you would like." Justin suggested.

"No, it's okay. Thank you for offering." She replied sweetly.

Justin was a little taken aback by her sudden rush to get back to work. However, he figured that Abagail just wanted a distraction from how she was feeling. Justin didn't take it personally. Abagail just interacted with other people in a different way to others.

Justin felt good about being able to help her. He cared about her wellbeing a lot.

Justin got back to work. His primary duty right now was monitoring his team members, and ensuring everything ran smoothly. Due to the weather, there were only a few people working at the moment, so his workload was thinned out for the time being.

Justin watched the repair crews operate the cherry picker and scissor lifts while he was on shift. They would go up and down, carrying workers on and off of the roof or to a particular height to conduct repairs on the side of the ship. It was satisfying to him seeing the workers use the lifts. All his hard work, the hard work of Derek and the hard work of the others that helped in moving the lifts had paid off.

While Justin was busy working, Derek approached him. Derek had just been looking around the ship. He had a concerned expression on his face. Such a sight was a rarity.

"Hey uh, Justin. I was just taking a looksee around the ship since my curiosity got the better of me. And uh, to say the least, what I saw was rather concerning. Now I don't know if it's the heat, the stress, the sleep deprivation, or just plain ol' stupidity, but I saw some major problems with the Bronto in my quick walk through. For a start, some of the essential wiring in the ship has been repaired incorrectly. Y'know, nothing too big or important though, only the stuff that controls and powers the life support systems and the engines, fortunately.