They arrived at another ramp, which went in both directions. “It might be a good idea to go back down,” said Wally. “Where the open hatch is.”

Hutch, still listening, broke in. “You’ve got about an hour’s air left. You guys might want to think about coming back.”

“Yeah,” said Derek. “Sounds like a good idea.”

•  •  •

Hutch would have liked to see the bridge, assuming there was one, but it was probably a four-kilometer walk from where Derek was. She stopped paying close attention to them once they’d started back. But a few minutes later, both of them started asking where the hell they were. That was her signal to get into a pressure suit. “You guys lost?” she asked.

“No,” said Derek. “We’re trying to find the cafeteria.”

That didn’t reassure her. The cafeteria was on the way back. If they didn’t know where it was, they had a problem.

Great.

Ken had been listening too. “You going after them?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“No. You and Beth stay here. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She climbed into a suit, pulled on an oxygen tank and a go-pack, and added two more oxygen tanks. The alien vehicle had rolled away, and the side with the open hatch was no longer visible. “Barry,” she said, “line us up as best you can.” She went back to the bridge.

Barry maneuvered the Eiferman into a position from which the airlock would face the open hatch. “You’ll have about eight minutes before you lose it,” he said.

Hutch grabbed the extra tanks, slipped into the airlock, and depressurized. She was still listening to the conversation between Derek and Wally.

“Where is the damned thing?” said Derek.

“I was sure it was in this corridor.”

“Doesn’t look like it. Let’s back up. Check that other one back there. I think we got turned around.”

“The problem with this place is everything looks the same.”

Air pressure went to zero. Hutch opened up the hatch and looked across a significant stretch of void at the giant ship, which literally blocked off the sky. The entry hatch Derek and Wally had used was visible, angling closer. “Barry, be careful. We don’t want a collision.”

“I need you to get moving, Captain.”

She pushed off and activated the jet. “Derek,” she said, “on my way. Maybe best is to stay where you are till I get there.”

“We can manage this, Priscilla,” he said. “All we need right now is for you to come over and get lost.”

“Too late, Derek.” She descended to the hull, landing within a few meters of the open hatch. She went inside, turned on her lamp, and saw the circle with the strike through it, and the coiled snake. Okay. The room they’d broken into showed up straight down the corridor.