by Jon Lymon
They watched the ship taxi off the runway and into the hangar at the end, its quadruple nuclear engines gradually losing their red glow as the engines cooled.
“Check out the livery,” said DT, pointing to the huge US flag, SEC logo and the ship’s name ‘The Cavalier’ on its starboard side.
“There have been quite a few SEC ships arriving in the last month,” said Aurora.
“The big boys are in town,” said Remnant. “What the hell are they all doing here?”
“They’ve got to be on their way to the belt,” said DT.
Aurora shook her head. “There’s only been SEC landings so far. No take-offs. Word is there’s some big operation going down on the far side of the planet. Loads of heavy machinery has been drafted in.”
“Maybe they’ve struck oil?” DT suggested. “You Americans like your oil.”
“We like other people’s oil too,” quipped Aurora.
They all watched as uniformed SEC guards briskly exited The Cavalier and lowered the entrance gate to the hangar.
“Someone’s in a hurry,” said Remnant.
“And so are we,” added DT. “Come on Mitch, let’s go.”
Bettis pointed to the still flashing red lights. DT drummed his fingers on the arm of his seat. He bent forward to look up and out into the Martian night sky to see if there were any more incoming ships. “I think that’s it. I think we should go.”
Bettis hesitated. It went against a pilot’s instinct to jump a red.
“Come on, if they’re here to refuel and head off into the belt we need to get a headstart.”
Bettis’ hand hovered over the thruster, then pulled away, then returned. Finally he announced “crew seats for take-off.” With some reluctance, and against his better judgement, Bettis eased the ship onto the runway, and with a deep breath prepared for launch.
“Are you sure you don’t want to switch to computer control?” said Remnant, as Bettis’ hand hovered over the thruster again. The pilot glanced over his shoulder at Remnant standing next to Aurora, holding on to a clump of wires that arched down from the ceiling like a multi-coloured hammock.
Bettis grinned, turned back and pushed the thruster forward.
The Baton Uric reacted with a roar, refreshed by its Martian hiatus, replenished by the pure and fresh liquid hydrogen that bubbled in its tanks.
Remnant gripped the wires until they burned his palms as the G-forces went to work, forcing him against the back wall of the cockpit.
Bettis eased the ship into the air then banked sharply right, as much to inconvenience Remnant as to alter the ship’s trajectory towards its destination.
DT felt the queasiness he’d experienced on launch from Earth a few months earlier, but such was the sparse nature of his diet, he had very little to offer in the way of vomit.
Remnant looked down at Aurora who seemed unaffected by the launch, softly smiling to herself as she looked at Bettis.
“I hope we’re heading in the right direction,” said Remnant.
Bettis tried to ignore the comment but felt he had to respond. “We’re heading towards that.” He pointed to a circle barely the size of the moon directly in front of them.
“What is that?” Remnant whispered to Aurora.
“You don’t know?” she asked.
“It’s a bit big and round to be an asteroid, innit?”
“That’s Jupiter. The biggest planet in our solar system.”
Remnant felt stupid for not knowing, and his heart sank further when, as the ship levelled out, Aurora unclipped herself from her seat and walked forward to stand between Bettis and DT at the front.
“Nice take off. You done that before?” she asked Bettis.
“Not for a while, and never from Mars,” he replied. “Got to say it felt good.” Bettis grinned and felt some of his swagger returning. Some of the confidence and excitement that had got him passionate about flying in the first place was seeping back. He flicked the plastered switch that reverted control of the ship back to the computer, and turned to face Aurora.
“So what’s it like, living on Mars?” he asked her, eyes all smiling and teeth gleaming, with not a hair out of place as he self-consciously placed his elbow over the back of his seat.
“Boring. The place is like one glorified highway service station. People just stop to fill up their tanks, take a shit, grab something to eat and get the hell out. Pretty much like what you guys did.”
“Please do not blame us for the failure of an entire planet, Miss Aurora,” said DT.
“Oh no. Blame lays squarely on the shoulders of the planet’s commissioner. Dorothea Clarke.”
“I think I’ve heard of her,” lied Bettis, glancing back at Remnant who was sitting down in the rear cockpit seat, trying to work out how best to squeeze his way into the conversation.
“Yeah,” Aurora continued, “she’s let the place go to ruin. Basically SEC can do whatever they like. Land when they want. Import as much hardware as they want. And now the big multinationals from Earth are gradually putting local companies like ours out of business. We don’t stand a chance. They’re coming in with their mega budgets and setting up shop, ready to refuel all the diamond hunters they’re expecting to arrive.”
“Have there been many arrivals?” Bettis asked.
“The trickle is gradually getting stronger, but a lot of the ships arrive in a bad way and don’t get much further. Most of them are badly built.”
“And you said no one’s come back from the belt?”
“Not yet. It’s at least a ninety day round trip remember, and it’s only in the last month that ships have begun to head off there.”
“Did you see any Norwegians?” DT asked.
Aurora frowned at the randomness of the question.
“It’s just that there were reports before we left Earth of some reaching the asteroid.”
“If they did, they’ve not made it back to Mars. I’m pretty sure we’d have heard if anyone had. All the news from Earth right now is about the unrest. Things are really getting serious back there. Anti-US sentiment is at an all-time high.”
“Petty jealousies, if you ask me,” said Bettis.
“What about the criminals on Mars?” Remnant chipped in from the back of the cockpit. Everyone turned to face him.
“What about them?” Aurora asked coldly.
“There’s loads of them ain’t there? All getting together like pirates to raid ships loaded with diamonds while they refuel for the trip home.”
“Hey look, there’s certainly a few felons on the planet, I’m not denying that. But most people are just honest folk looking to make a new start in life. That’s how I ended up out here.”
“Did you move here alone?” DT asked.
Aurora paused, losing herself in a momentary memory. “I came with my family. My husband and three kids.”
“You have three kids?” DT sounded surprised.
She nodded.
“Where are they?”
“Back on Mars with my sister.”
“And they were OK with you just upping and leaving?”
“They’ve known I’ve wanted to go for a long time.”
“Wait a minute.” Remnant thought he’d worked something out. “They weren’t mutants who came over to our ship, were they?
“Who said they were mutants?”
Bettis looked into his lap.
“They were dressed up, is all,” she said. The crew looked embarrassed and Aurora was amused by the fear her three children had caused.
“One of them was really tall, though” Remnant added. Aurora laughed.
“What about your husband?” DT asked, trying to sound as disinterested as he could.
“I’ve not seen him for a while.”
“What did he do, run off with someone else?” Remnant’s clumsy question again attracted a trio of unfriendly looks.
“He just walked out one night. No goodbyes, no nothing.”
“Nice guy.”
; “He was.”
There was a pause that none of the men knew how to fill.
“So, whose ship is this?” Aurora asked with a brightness that belied the darkness of the conversation that had gone before.
DT cleared his throat and adjusted his tie. “I’m the captain, so I guess it’s mine.”
Remnant was itching to refute that but thought better of it.
“You been in space before?” she asked DT.
“Never. I am a jeweller by trade. I own my own business in Hatton Garden.”
The name didn’t mean anything to Aurora.
“It’s London’s jewellery quarter.”
“Ah, OK, so you must be doing well for yourself, huh?”
“Not bad for a refugee from Nigeria, even if I do say so myself.”
She smiled. “And I guess you’ll be able to figure out the quality of the diamond asteroid just by looking at it, huh?”
DT smiled. “I’d like to think my expert eye will yield insights into the quality of it from a distance, yes.”
“Do you fly?” asked Bettis who had been watching the conversation between her and DT unfold with increasing frustration.
Aurora turned back to face him. “Er, no, I don’t. I mean, I learnt the basics from sitting alongside my husband a few times, but I don’t have the confidence or skill to actually do it myself.”
“I’ll teach you.”
“Oh, sure, sure, that would be cool.”
Remnant had heard and seen enough and made sure everyone saw him leave the cockpit. He slumped onto the bottom bunk in the cabin. He didn’t like the confusion of emotions that were swirling around his head and heart. She wasn’t that attractive, or that witty. Not his type at all. And she was American. He’d not met many, his only experience of them being on the television, or from the few tourists who strayed into The Old Mitre. But more crucial and painful than all that was the fact she clearly wasn’t interested in him.
About ten minutes later, the door to the cabin creaked open and Remnant pretended to be asleep.
“Hey.”
It was her. He didn’t reply.
“Hey you, can I come in?”
Remnant feigned having been woken and half sat up on his elbows. “What’s the matter?” he said faking grogginess.
“I’m just having a look around, as none of you guys has given me a tour yet.”
“Oh, sorry. Er… this is the cabin.”
She sniffed the air. “Smells interesting.”
“That’s not all me,” said Remnant.
“No, there’s a lot going on in here,” she said still sniffing. “Definitely something that more than one man will have to take responsibility for.” She paused. “What was that all about back there?”
“I was tired. It’s been a stressful time.”
“Really?”
“There’s things going on here that are a bit strange.”
“Like what?”
“I can’t say.”
“Shit, are you all weirdos or something?”
“Well, I don’t think I am, but that’s a matter of opinion.”
“And the other guys?”
“I’m saying nothing. I’m not saying you’re in any danger or anything.”
“You just did.”
“No, well you’re not, I don’t think.”
“I’m confused.”
“Yeah, so am I. I’ve just woken up, I don’t know what I’m going on about. Ignore me.”
“Wow, freaky. I think I’ll head back to…er…you get some more sleep.”
She smiled weakly and briefly then let herself out. Remnant lay flat on his bunk, sighed, shook his head, pursed his lips and exhaled. On a scale of one to ten of disastrousness, that conversation was at least a nine.
31
After the initial enthusiasm and interest generated by having a new crew member on board waned, the atmosphere on the Baton Uric reverted back to its previous pattern of long silences interspersed with food-based conversations and the odd but unsuccessful attempt at flirtation with Aurora by each of the men.
Bettis was the worst and most frequent offender. He mentioned several times to Aurora his keenness to teach her how to fly, and eventually she succumbed. During the first lesson, he made a big deal of guiding her hands over the various knobs, buttons, dials and sticks that were required to control the ship. Aurora listened attentively to his talk of procedures and his dislike of the over-reliance on computers. Remnant watched from the rear cockpit seat for as long as he could bear to. Usually, Bettis’ over-enthusiastic smiles and his eagerness to touch Aurora forced Remnant to his cabin, where more often than not, DT would be happily snoring, doing battle with the engines to see who could make the most noise.
In between sleeps and occasional conversations with Aurora and DT, Remnant had plenty of time to get to know the planet Jupiter. It stared back at him through the cockpit windscreen like a giant torso-less head, its red swirling storm forming its Cyclopian eye.
“You could fit three Earths inside that spot,” Aurora told him after seeing his fascination with the planet increase over a period of weeks.
“Really? It’s that big?”
She joined him at the front of the cockpit. “Sure is.”
“What’s it made of?”
“Gas, I think. I mean, I’m no expert, I just know the basics.”
Remnant didn’t answer her.
“You haven’t said much recently.”
Remnant looked at her. “It’s been a tough journey for me. I’ve got issues.”
“Who hasn’t?”
“Real big issues.”
“Still with you, buddy.”
Remnant smiled. “Yeah, I’ll stop going on.”
“No, no, vent if you need to. We all need time to get shit out there.”
“You really think there’s a diamond out there?” said Remnant.
“Geez, that’s the million dollar question, for sure. I’ve no idea, but people more sensible than me seem to think there is, so who am I to argue? It’s gotta be worth checking out though, huh?”
“I bloody hope so, darlin’. What will you do if we find it?”
“You mean after all the shouting and screaming and high fiving, and fainting?”
Remnant smiled.
“Do you know what, I’ve no idea, Sye. I can call you Sye, right?”
He nodded.
“I really haven’t thought about that, and perhaps I should. How about you?”
“I ain’t thought of anything else. And I’ve still no idea what I’ll do. Whether I’ll just laugh or shrug me shoulders or scream the house down or just piss myself. I just don’t know if I’ll be able to handle it.”
The conversation was interrupted by Bettis entering, wiping sleep from his eyes. “This looks cosy.”
Aurora smiled. “We were just trying to figure out how we’d react to seeing a huge diamond out there.”
“Right.” Bettis walked over to the cockpit and slumped into his seat, feeling the strain in his lower back caused by sleeping in a bunk too small. His pain was soon forgotten as he leaned forward and tapped the dashboard.
“That’s interesting.”
“What is?”
Remnant and Aurora rushed over. Bettis pointed to the radar. “There, look.”
On the screen, slightly to the left of where they were heading was a dot.
“What is it?” Aurora asked, her curiosity peaking.
“It’s a dot,” Remnant joked, his attempt at wit lost on the other two.
“It could be anything,” said Bettis.
“An alien?” Aurora asked.
“An asteroid?” Remnant asked. “The asteroid?”
“I don’t know about that. We’re still a long way outside of the belt, although it’s pretty common for asteroids to get knocked into strange orbits.”
Remnant took a deep breath.
“You need to sit down,” Aurora told him.
Remnant nodded and took DT’s sea
t beside Bettis.
“Let’s go and check it out,” she said.
Bettis groaned. “I don’t know about that, either. It’s a long way off our set course. We’ll burn a lot of fuel getting there.”
“But what if it’s the diamond?” Remnant asked.
“Chances are it isn’t. All the information we have suggests the diamond asteroid is still several million miles from here.”
“I’ve got a good feeling about this, guys, let’s go check it out” said Aurora.
“Why are you so desperate to see what it is?” Bettis asked.
“I’m not desperate. I just think we should eliminate it from our investigations before we go wandering off deeper into space.”
It seemed a fair enough answer to Remnant, but Bettis needed more convincing. “I can’t sanction a change of direction on this scale. We need the captain’s say so.”
“Who made him captain?” Remnant asked.
“Not this again.”
“Yes, this again.”
“Hey, it’s a fair question, Mitch,” said Aurora. “Is this ship a democracy or what? I vote we check it out.”
“And I’ll second that,” said Remnant.
“No, really?” said Bettis with mock surprise. “Well, I vote we check with the captain. We’ll need to count his vote if this ship is to be as democratic as you want it to be.”
Aurora rushed out of the cockpit.
“He’s not going to like it,” Bettis said, more to himself than Remnant.
“It’s not all about what he likes.”
The cockpit door opened and Aurora all but dragged DT to the front of the ship.
“This had better be good. I was midway through a very pleasant dream.”
Aurora pointed to the radar. “See that?”
DT adjusted his eyes, which soon widened. He leaned closer to the dashboard. “What is that?” he asked Bettis.
“Could be an asteroid,” said Remnant.
“The asteroid?”
Bettis sighed again. “As I’ve already told these two, that’s highly unlikely. We’re a long way from where the rock we’re looking for should be.”
“But what if it is our asteroid?” Aurora pleaded. “Are we gonna go sailing right past without checking it out?”
“How far away is it, Mitch?” DT asked.
“Hmm, I’d say it’s about the same distance from London to Sydney. Depending on which direction it’s moving. It’ll take us about six hours to reach it.”
