Star Law: A Marshal Cole Series

Chapter 26 (c)

The Central Plaza had two main passenger access points. Only the center of the ship and the Engine Room had unique areas with their own specific criteria for emergency containment. The rest of the ship was comprised of 13 decks and 10 sections bow to stern that had double sets of pressure doors that sealed in an emergency. During the earlier crisis aboard the ship, all doors had been closed till the danger had lifted.

On either side of Central Plaza were the ship's main elevator banks where grand halls discharged passengers on the main deck also known as the Promenade. The entryways were located at the bow and stern through expansive pressure doors. The bow was normally a busy traffic area but the corridor was blocked because of the fire during the psi blast. Only the stern remained open while repair crews cleared and cleaned the burnt debris. The grim task was almost done.

The space between the bow pressure doors was the equivalent of a large airlock which in essence, it was. It also was the first place that Miguel came up with as a suitable place to build a Horn's Faraday cage. The theory that blocking electrical fields was the key to capturing a psi individual required a space with four walls. It also had to be a place where people actually went aboard ship and could be closed off once the trap was sprung.

It was Boz who was able to arrange the supplies and power source. Using a remote iNan printer, the android created the necessary parts to build the cage while Horn and Miguel assembled it disguising it beneath flooring, walls and ceiling. To the outside observer, it would look no different than it had before.

There were other passenger entrances up a few decks but the most convenient ones were on the Promenade and saw nearly all of the traffic. With the bow entryway blocked off for fire repairs, the remaining stern entrance saw nearly every passenger pass through at some point in a day. The plan was that when the Faraday cage was complete, the bow entrance would re-open while the stern entrance would be shut down. Boz had received the captain's approval for everything without elaborating what it was for. It was still best to keep information within a tight circle.

Horn finished placing a cover over a section of the Faraday cage. He glanced to Miguel who was finishing his own work on the opposite wall. "This is a good size to lay our trap but it risks that other people might get caught in here at the same time."

"There are times where it is less busy of course,"said Miguel. "But I'm not sure how we control the time someone passes through here."

"It would involve us creating a lure to draw out our suspect or suspects," began Horn. "That way we know in terms of time."

Boz had been calibrating the power source and had completed the work. "Everything is all done and can be controlled remotely."

"How fast will the Faraday cage close?" asked Miguel.

"The static boundaries of floor, ceiling and walls are ready to be energized once the doors front and back are shut," began Boz. "And that is very quickly."

"How quick?" queried Horn.

"Please stand back," said Boz who then pressed a remote button in his hand. This triggered two doors front and back to swing at breakneck speed and click shut an instant later. Horn, Miguel and Boz now stood inside a rectangular box that gave off a slight hum.

"That is very quickly," laughed Miguel. "And none of this can be seen until it is too late!"

Horn smiled. "I do believe we are ready on this end. We just now have to set the trap."

"I'll inform captain that the bow entryway can be re-opened and the stern should be shut down," said Boz. He retracted the doors and shut off the power leaving no signs of what lay hidden away.