4: Next Stop--Torpol
Sitting at the gunner's station, Viridian was relieved that they weren't instantly attacked by anything. The Highport was still out of range... from either side, so he decided to delve into the library computer to see what he could find out about Torpol.
After a quick skim, he spoke up.
"Hey, folks! Torpol is a tourist trap!" he announced. "The only people that go down to the planet are tourists that want to luxuriate in the fancy resorts that Torpol is known for."
"There's a Downport, but there's no repair facilities there because it's built on a slab of ice. It's at the capitol on the South Pole. There's little or no land under the ice, so there are no monstrous skyscrapers and stuff. They don't build up, they build out."
When the request for the ship's medical clearance came, it caused a frown on Viridian's face. He tapped at his console for a moment.
"I apologize, folks, for not staying on top of that. I did medical scans on all the Stregors, but, for some reason, I just thought that the Princess had done it for all of us. After all, it was her ship at that point."
"And, like everyone else, I just took it for granted that it was being done automatically... like it's supposed to do."
"I think there's a lesson to be learned here: we can't take anything for granted. I suggest, the first chance we get, we do a complete detailed inspection of the ship. Yeah, we did an initial one, but we were directing our attention only to what needed repaired."