Neither rough weather nor problems with the crew marred the next leg of our journey and the days and nights passed without event.

Despite the ease of passage, there was no time to loaf. The smaller crew and personal modifications meant more awareness and more maintenance work for everybody. I kept a running tally of supplies we would need to fix minor problems the next time we stopped for supplies.

It was at the Turnpike Gasbag that several coded messages were delivered to me by sullen Audion signallers. The most rewarding part of their job came from being a party to everyone’s news and, as I received mine in code, I was denying them their only real perk. They were mad but I hoped that they wouldn’t hold it against me. This was not a ship used to secrets.

The first two messages were not for me. One was just a log of troop movements and the other a simple notation that another Fold had been located. The last message surprised me by being new orders.

We had been commanded to cross over into enemy territory.