I stood up and helped Clair into her bunk, kissing her lightly on the lips. "I'm a little scared," she said.
"Don't be silly. Nothing to be afraid of, honey." I was glad she couldn't feel me trembling.
Gramps was next, and I saw to it that his straps were fastened properly, then I sat down again in the pilot-chair, buckling a heavy leather belt across my thighs.
"Thirty seconds!"
I remember wondering vaguely if the Karden could get us to the Belt in one piece, and not hours behind every other ship. Then a shrill whistle outside was going "beep-beep-beep!" and I pulled the firing lever back all the way.
I grinned at Clair. "How do you like weighing exactly nothing?"
"You always told me I was a little too skinny, Captain Brooks, sir!"
Gramps scowled darkly. "Aw, you two kids are just making fun of the Karden, that's all. So what if we ain't got any gravity to speak of?"
The Karden had been built before each ship had its own little gravity unit, and no one had ever bothered to refit her. Clair had set up the guide-ropes right after acceleration, and now we floated around the crammed little cabin of the ship if we weren't careful. I had to admit Gramps was right, however. A little inconvenience like this didn't really matter, and the important thing was the fact that I could look out the port and see all the little motes of the thousand other ships gleaming in the sunlight like tiny space-born fireflies. The Karden was definitely holding its own.