Free Rainbird by Rabia Gale

at your shroom. No, we’re not going to them!”
    “We don’t know he was responsible for any of that,” said Sanders reasonably. “Besides, he’s Company .”
    “The same Company that doesn’t want you working on the alloy that’s going to strengthen the sunway and make the bonerot go away. The same Company that’s framing you for setting the bomb. The same Company that’s holding Petrus captive. Why would they do that? Why sabotage the sunway?” Rainbird struck her knees with each question. “Isn’t that the only reason the Company exists? Who would want to destroy the one thing that makes human life possible on this world?”
    “Oh.” Sanders was silent for a moment. “Actually, the Day Sun may not be the only thing. The Cooperative’s been boasting they have an alternative to the sunway. ”
    “How can you just have an alternative to the sunway? It’s the sun , for Glew’s sake! Besides, Petrus doesn’t think they have a viable solution.”
    “Ah, well, they’ve gone away from biochemical reactions entirely. Their sun is powered by reactions at a sub-microscopic level, basically splitting apart dense atoms. They want to send it into orbit inside a framework of…” He launched into a highly technical discussion of the processes involved, of which Rainbird understood about every third word.
    Someone wanted to replace the sun ? That was…was…blasphemy, almost.
    Now she knew how the eiree felt when the humans put the Day Sun on the track, replacing Glew, their own cold star, as the primary celestial body of their world.
    “They’re putting everyone in danger by pushing this untried technology,” she said over Sanders’ explanation.
    “Well, on paper—” he began.
    “And they’re the only ones I know of who have a motive for destroying the sunway. Glew! Turnworth must be working for them.”
Now I know why the eiree are helping Turnworth and the Cooperative. They’d love to have the humans off the sunway so they could have it back to themselves.
    “Rainbird?” Sanders eyed her warily. “What are you going to do?”
    “Get Petrus back. And thanks to you, I know just how we’ll find him.” She gave him a hard-edged smile.
    “Oh dear.” Sanders leaned his head back. “I think I’m getting dizzy again.”
     
    “Here’s the deal.” Rainbird leaned back against warm bone and talked into a mouthpiece that smelled of sweat and onion. “I’m not going anywhere until I know Petrus is alive and safe. I want to talk to him first.”
    Silence. Then Turnworth said, “I don’t think you want to waste too much of my time. Or his. He’s really not doing too well, you know. Lungsickness, you see.” He sounded sad, as if he had nothing to do with kidnapping Petrus and subjecting him to additional stress.
    “I have Sanders and the knowledge in his brain. How much is that worth to you?” said Rainbird, bluntly. Across from her, Sanders’ mouth crooked into a self-mocking twist.
    “Very well. I will call you back in—”
    “No. One hour. And I’ll call you . Goodbye.” She cut the connection before Turnworth had the brilliant idea of tracing it back to this location.
    After all, that was her brilliant idea.
    “And now we wait,” she told Sanders. He nodded, still hunched over the machine he’d cobbled together from spare parts. They’d raided three inspection huts to find enough gear to create a device that could plug into the spinal cord, and send a tracking signal to Turnworth’s callbox. If she could keep Petrus and Turnworth on the line for long enough, Sanders would be able to pinpoint the location they were keeping Petrus at.
    Rainbird had made sure that Turnworth would talk to her on his personal callbox, and she was fairly certain that he would go to Petrus, rather than moving him around.
    She had a plan. It would work. She’d get Petrus back.
    “Snack?” Rainbird offered to Sanders, rummaging in her pack for a sunway mix of nuts, raisins and bits of dried beef. He