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Chapter 50

Chapter 50

January 31st, 2158 (station time)

Logan entered the storage room where Josh and Suke were busy working on a mech.  Manuel was working on a little hardware module that Logan assumed was an adapted transmitter.  He was a mix of emotions; Logan could see the struggle of trying to hold them back.  Josh was anxious, Logan had learned that Josh was not good at dealing with emotions, his own or others.  The anxiety was a result of this.  Suke on the other hand was quietly working on a mech.

"Manuel?"  Logan inquired as diplomatically as he could.

"What?"  Manuel asked gruffly without looking up from his work.

"I was just wondering if I could help?"

Manuel stopped working and looked at Logan.  At first his face was hard and angry, but a moment or two later it softened.  He took a deep breath before speaking.  "You'll need to open the transmitter on your mech.  It's located on the mech's back above the left hip."

Logan knew exactly where it was; after all, he had probably close to a hundred hours work time on his mech.

"Once you have the transmitter exposed," Manuel continued, "you will need one of these."  Manuel held up the device he was working on.  "Josh or Suke could walk you though installing it.  Once it's in, I will test it to make sure it is functioning properly.  Then you will reassemble the transmitter as it was before."

Without any further instructions Logan went to the workbench where most of the tools were stored.  He started to collect the tools that he would need when Chuck and Aashif entered the room.

"Have you begun work on our mechs yet?"  Aashif asked.

Manuel didn't respond, instead it was Suke who answered for him.  "No, we have not begun on your mechs."

"Good," Chuck replied

The two security agents climbed into their mechs without a word.  Less than two minutes later the two were powered up and heading for the exit.

"Hope it isn't too heavy."  Chuck said quietly to Aashif as they left the room.

The comment was not meant for anyone but Aashif, yet Logan couldn't help but overhear it.  From the loud clank across the room Manuel apparently heard it as well.  It would seem that Chuck and Aashif were on clean up duty, and Chucks comment reminded Manuel about what he had been forced to be a part of, only a few moments before.

An uneasy quiet filled the room, broken only by the sounds of tools being used.  The moral of the team was low.  Logan wondered to himself if they were going to get back to the station before someone did something they would later regret.

In an attempt to separate him from negative feelings that he (and most likely others in the room) was feeling, Logan focused on his work.  The work was easy, yet still required focus and patience.  Focus and patience were two attributes that Logan was running low on.

After working in silence for the better part of ten minutes, Logan heard someone begin to hum.  At first he wasn't sure whom it was coming from, but shortly discovered it was Suke.  Logan didn't know the tune that Suke was humming. It sounded like an old folk song, maybe from a hundred years ago.

Suke had started humming quietly, but as the time passed he hummed louder, until he could be heard from anywhere in room.  Logan listened intently as he worked, enjoying the change from the silence.  The biggest suprise was when Josh began to sing along with Suke's humming.

Josh's singing had a slow tempo that matched the humming.  In a minor tone, Josh began to sing what was probably the chorus.

It was a sad sad day for you and I,