Her body was soft to his touch, her silky hair caressed his cheek, her breath sweet on his face. But he pushed her aside, and cried out to the helmsman, "How does she fly?"
The helmsman, craning his neck as he curled an arm about the wheel, shouted back, "On even keel, sir, but she won't steer!"
Ross pushed the Princess unceremoniously from him and stood erect. He rushed to the window and saw with relief that the ship was circling away from the Crater. Gauges showed that the ship flew steady except for that odd circling. An artisan, bursting into the control room from the after gun station, explained the mystery.
"One rudder flange haywire, sir!"
"So that's it!" Ross spoke calmly. "Shot away?"
The man's face worked. "Burned away, sir!"
"Burned—" Ross thought fast. He nodded to the artisan, who departed with a scared look about.
Moore had heard the report. He whistled. "Burned away, huh? Sounds like a B-ray."
"B-ray? What's that?" snapped Ross.