“We’re not interested in finding Old-Tech,” said Hester automatically. She was at the chart table, trying to plot a course, and Pennyroyal was annoying her more and more.
“Of course not, dear girl!” cried Pennyroyal, looking at the bulkhead beside her (he didn’t trust himself yet to look at her awful face without wincing). “Of course not! A very noble and sensible prejudice. And yet-”
“It’s not a prejudice,” snapped Hester, pointing a pair of dividers at him in a way that made him fear she might do him serious mischief. “My mum was an archaeologist. An explorer and adventurer and historian, just like you. She went to the dead lands of America and dug something up and brought it home. Something called MEDUSA. The rulers of London got to hear about it and sent their man Valentine to kill her for it. He did this to my face while he was about it. He took it to London and the Engineers there got it working and Bang! It backfired, and that was the end of that.”
“Ah, yes,” said Pennyroyal, rather chastened. “Everybody knows of the MEDUSA event. Why, I can remember exactly what I was doing at the time. I was aboard Cittamotore, in the company of a delightful young woman named Minty Bapsnack. We saw the flash light up the eastern sky from half a world away…”
“Well, we were right next to it. We flew through the blast-wave, and we saw what was left of London next morning. A whole city, Tom’s city, burned to clinker by something my mum dug up. That’s why we steer well clear of Old-Tech.”