Drummond admitted freely that, once they began cutting it, there was no way to be sure at precisely which point the asteroid would come loose. That lent a degree of uncertainty to the operation, but he seemed confident there was no possibility the rock would cause damage or threaten the team now on the far side of the plate.

She couldn't help noticing how close the shuttle was and wondered whether Drummond had considered the possibility it might come their way.

"Why will it go anywhere at all?" she asked him. "What makes you think it won't stay right where it is?"

"The center of gravity will change," he said, not entirely hiding a note of disdain. "It'll change for both the asteroid and the assembly. So they'll both change their dynamics somewhat."

"Can we predict what'll happen?" she asked.

"Not as precisely as I'd like. Under normal circumstances it'd be simple enough. But with the gas giant in the neighborhood, the calculations get a bit sticky." He looked at her, apparently trying to decide whether she was frightened. "There's really nothing to worry about, if that's what you're thinking." He checked their position on the screens. "Okay," he said into a mike. "Ready to go."

The AI took over. It accelerated, descended closer to the surface, and aimed the lasers that Miles's team had installed. Drummond warned the people among the shafts to get behind the plate and stay there. "Keep your heads down," he told them. "We're starting."

Janet knew that he'd have preferred to have no one out on the assembly while they were releasing the rock. Especially this close. But they had to cut fifteen shafts away from the plate, and there simply wouldn't be time to get the job done unless they'd started on it as soon as they arrived.

The shuttle moved in close. Janet could have put a foot out the airlock and touched the asteroid. In its flat masculine voice, the AI informed them portentously it was about to activate the lasers.

It performed a brief countdown, and twin lances of white light sliced into the dust.

The shuttle moved slowly north to south down the face of the asteroid. It passed just wide of the south pole and started back up.

"We're getting a good cut," said Frank. "We should have separation in a minute or so." Then he added, "Uh-oh."

Janet's heart picked up a beat.

"Everybody, heads up." It was the voice of Frank the pilot. "Rock swarm incoming. About thirty seconds. Get behind the plate on the assembly side."

Tom Scolari looked over the top of the plate to see if they were visible. The action brought a cold remonstrance from Janet, and he got back down. The other members of his team were complying.

"Stay behind the plate," warned Janet. "They're coming in over the asteroid. Keep low, and you'll be fine."

Something blurred past him, a quick silent shadow across the stars. And a second, little more than the whisper of his own heartbeat. It all happened so quickly he couldn't be sure. People were breathing on the circuit. Somebody made a scared noise.

He felt a vibration, and then a jolt. Out along the assembly, something flashed.

"That one hit," Janet said.

Another tremor shook them. Scolari gazed into the eyes of the woman beside him. She looked frightened.

He waited, listening to his pulse until Frank came back up: "That seems to be it, folks. Screen's clear."

"Everybody okay?" asked Drummond.

There were some acknowledgments, and Janet had them respond to their names. While they did, Scolari counted bodies. All present. All moving.

They looked at one another. The woman-her name was Kit- went back to work. But from that moment, whatever nonchalance he might have possessed earlier, Scolari understood that he'd put his life at risk. HΠwas glad not to be alone.

His instructions were simple: slice into as many of the shafts as possible. But no deeper than about halfway until the asteroid was gone. When the shuttle announced that separation was imminent, see that everyone stayed behind the plate. When it was over, when the rock had been disposed of, go back and finish the job, cut everything loose so that the Alpha shaft, the plate, and the net remained one piece but had been separated from the rest of the assembly.

Scolari was the oldest member of his team. He didn't know much about the personal lives of the others, only what he'd picked up from a few dropped hints. This one was on the prowl, that one was a mother of two. But they were all excited about helping rescue the landing party. Two were visibly scared. Maybe they all were, and some just better at hiding it. God knew he was scared. But the adrenaline rush was high, and he felt good. Watching the dancing lights of the lasers flickering around the edges of the plate, he felt incredibly alive. Everyone, he thought, should have a chance to do something like this at least once in a lifetime.

Back along the assembly, toward Deepsix, lights were approaching. He recognized the triangle of lamps on the prow: It was an Academy shuttle. Though whether it was from his own ship or from Wendy, he had no idea.

Janet's voice broke in: "All right, people. Everybody down. It should be any moment now."

The glow had moved around to the other end of the plate. That meant they'd cleared the south pole and were working their way up. Janet had assured them that when the rock began to move, there was no way it could come in their direction. And he believed her, but it was easier to accept in the illuminated ready room on the ship than out here sitting behind a narrow strip of metal that was all that shielded them from the monster.

He was leaning against the plate when it shuddered.

"Asteroid's away," said Janet.

One of the women, a middle-aged classics instructor with the unlikely name of Cleo, had backed off a bit and was gazing up. She was in tan coveralls and was wearing a blue scarf. Light from the laser fell across her features and her eyes were rising, looking at something behind him, over his shoulder. "There it goes," she said.

Scolari saw a black rim rolling out past one side of the plate, moving slowly. "And good riddance," Cleo added, waving farewell.

The confirmation that the rock had been cut loose was the signal for Lori to move Wildside up close again to the Alpha shaft. It guided the ship so that the shaft did not run directly parallel to the vessel's axis, but was angled at eighteen and a fraction degrees. The Zwick was also being attached off center, and aimed in the opposite direction, allowing these two vessels to start the rotation that would eventually bring Alpha's forward end to bear on Deepsix. When Wildside was lined up, Jase Power and his crew went back outside and welded ship and shaft together.

They completed the job without incident, examined their work, decided it looked okay, and waited for Janet's verdict. She insisted on close-ups, and minutes later a shuttle moved in for a sensor inspection. She directed them to go back and reinforce a couple of areas, then gave her blessing. "Very professional," she said. "Come back inside. Report when you're all in. And thanks."

Zwick was first to check in. "Attachment complete." They were welded to the Alpha shaft.

Wildside followed within seconds.

"We're all set," Janet told Drummond.

The asteroid, freed of its encumbrance, was seeking a new orbit. It would continue to circle Deepsix, at least for another day or so, until Jerry Morgan changed the deep-space geometry.

Drummond watched it go with a sense of satisfaction. It was rare, in his line of work, that he got to see so practical an application of his skills. It was true that Marcel and Beekman were technically making the decisions, but they were using Drummond's numbers. And, by God, it was a good feeling.

At the top of the assembly, the now-empty net was slowly spreading out. They had cut about three-quarters of the way around it when the asteroid came loose. Now the net trailed behind the assembly like a veil caught atop an endless stick.