Clockwork Heart by Dru Pagliassotti

Author:Dru Pagliassotti [Pagliassotti, Dru]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
Tags: SteamPunk, Fantasy
ISBN: 9780809572564
Publisher: Rockville : Juno ; c2008.
Published: 2011-05-10T14:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Taya's favorite Cabisi restaurant was close to the University campus, where it served foreign students and the occasional adventurous Ondinium like her. Cristof stuck to his decision to fast, only nibbling on shreds of the flatbread served with the meal. They discussed what they knew so far. It wasn't much, but it was safe territory. Taya didn't know what to think about Cristof envying Alister. She didn't know what to think about Cristof, period.

It was easier not to.

When she'd finished eating, they walked the four blocks to the University, heading back down to the basement of the Science and Technology building. The familiar sound of an argument greeted them, but Taya didn't hear the clatter of the analytical engine or the chugging of the steam engines.

"Hello,” she sang out, as they entered the room. The argument stopped as the programmers looked up. Palms hit foreheads and heads bobbed when they saw Cristof.

"This isn't a good time for a visit,” Kyle cautioned them. A large schematic was spread on the table in front of him. “A bug cropped up this morning and we've been trying to hunt it down all day."

"Did something go wrong with one of your programs?” Taya looked at the huge analytical engine that stood motionless across half the room. The thick cables that led down to the steam engines in the basement were disconnected.

"No, it's mechanical, we think.” Lars was inspecting a gear assembly. Cristof crossed the room to join him. “Some torsion in the spindles, maybe some gear drift...."

"What happened?"

"We came in this morning—"

"Afternoon,” Victor corrected. He was sitting next to a box of punch cards, glancing at each and then setting it to one side. “We were hung over this morning."

"This afternoon, early, and we found the engine running on its own."

"Is that bad?” Taya pulled around a chair and sat in it backward, her wings rising behind her.

"It can't be very good for the mechanism,” Cristof murmured, squinting as he examined the gears. “This is a precision machine, like a clock. Does it lose accuracy with metal wear?"

"Absolutely.” Lars rubbed oil off a spindle.

"Lars thinks the mechanical problems might have affected Heart's results,” Emelie said, smirking.

"That, or Alister had a serious glitch in his program,” Lars growled. “Anyway, it's not just the fact that the engine ran all night. Its encryption keys were overridden, too, so anyone could have gotten in and used it while we were gone."

"Did they?” Cristof asked, suddenly intent.

"Not that we can tell, but.... “Isobel shrugged. “The place was a mess when we left. We couldn't tell if anything had been moved when we got in this morning."

"Afternoon.” Victor tapped a card on the table and then put it back into his stack.

"Whenever."

"So, what went wrong with the Clockwork Heart program?” Taya inquired.

"It told us that Lars and Kyle had the best chance of a successful marriage,” Emelie replied, grinning.

"The deal was, if any of us scored well together, we'd go on a date and see if the program was right.

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