“Then take us to the jump point, best possible speed,” Ted ordered.  “But do not activate the Puller Drive without my specific authorisation.”

He settled back in his command chair and watched the updates from engineering as the crew scurried around, fixing the problems that had become apparent.  If there was a real problem, he knew, they would have to hold position in the Sol System so that it could be fixed ... but, thankfully, it didn't look as though there was any need to wait.  The engineering crew had the tools and spare parts to replace the useless or burned out components.  Anderson and his staff had spent the last two weeks scrounging up everything they could and stuffing every last compartment in the ship with spare parts.  Ark Royal could, in theory, operate for several years without needing outside supplies.

“The computer cores are holding together, thankfully,” Anderson said.  “I was worried they would object when we actually started to move.”

“I know,” Ted said.  “Keep monitoring their progress.”

He scowled, knowing how tricky that was likely to be.  The different generations of computer systems had never been designed to work together, let alone the ones that came from outside the Commonwealth.  In hindsight, he suspected, the human race might have good reason to regret not establishing a few common standards for technology.  Right now, a British carrier couldn't be repaired with spare parts from a Chinese carrier.  If the human race managed to remain united – and without unity, they were surely going to lose the war – that was going to have to be fixed.

Assuming we trusted them not to play games, he thought.  The Admiralty hadn't objected to Ark Royal’s crew using begged or scrounged Chinese components, but he'd always assumed that his superiors hadn't bothered to read his reports.  His crew had always checked the systems carefully, yet it was quite possible that they’d missed something dangerous, something the Chinese could use to manipulate the carrier to their advantage.  Would they try anything like that when the human race needed to remain united?

The starship quivered again as the main drives came to life, pushing her forward towards the jump point.  Ark Royal handled badly, compared to a frigate or a starfighters, but there was a reassuring firmness around her actions that more modern carriers lacked.  Or was that just his imagination, after seeing so many powerful ships torn apart with terrifying speed?  No wonder the civilians were panicking – along with quite a few politicians.  The Battle of New Russia had lasted barely ten minutes, most of which had been spent getting into position.

“Power curves remain nominal,” Anderson said.  “The main drive system is functional, sir.”

“Glad to hear it,” Ted said, dryly.  If the drive had failed, they'd know about it already.  “Repeat the standard tests on the Puller Drive, if you please.”

“Yes, sir,” Anderson said.