Mara went down the station list on the radio and asked each station the same question.
She had written it on the plate before she began, so she would not change it as she went. Exactly the same words, every station. No are you all right. No I know it’s hard, but. Nothing that could be heard as a favor asked of one station and not another, or as a hint of which answer she wanted.
Is your station ready to proceed, or does it need to stop?
There were nine stations on the list. Tal. The water lines, under Sen. Lorn. The extraction route. The outer radiator. The Meridian district crews at branch one. The city lamps at branch four. The trunk inlet, which was Eshel. And the counterweight, which was Doss.
Each one had to answer.
Nobody could answer for anyone else. Not even Mara. Each answer went on the list with its station’s name and the name of the person who gave it.
“Tal,” Mara said. Into the radio. “Is your station ready to proceed, or does it need to stop?”
Bren answered first.
