Pilgrim One_Prominence

by Christopher R. Marrs

“Shuttle Command, affirmative. Standoff positioning.”

  00+04-18`27`125

  Src: Nunet- Docking Ctrl

  Dest Req: - Nunet- Ctrl

  Desc: Cargo Airlock Hub Hatch Failure

  Priority: Priority: 1

  The message jumped up in his mind’s view of the data stream. The hatch was failing. He was watching the vid screen view of the hub interior to see if he could see any hatch damage. Suddenly emergency lighting and flashing lights illuminated the hub.

  “Environment Control to Nunet Control, hatch breach. We are venting atmosphere.”

  “Nunet Control, affirmative.”

  And then he could see it. Fog started to develop in the hub as the air pressure fell and the temperature dropped. Some lighter items were being caught up in a swirling rush towards the hatch. And then the hatch gave way. The mechs were still pushing against it and finally push the hatch’s edge out of its mount.

  The mechs at the new opening started moving through the hatch and slowly towards the other side of the hatch that was open to the void. Slowly they drove themselves out of the airlock and began drifting in the void away from Nunet.

  “Nunet Control to Environment Control, perform emergency power shutdown.”

  The need for an emergency shutdown had been one of the scenarios that the group had come up with while planning the mission. In truth, it was thought that this process was how the mission was going to end. Not with mechs on the loose, but with a loss of attitude control or a structural failure and this was the best way to get the hub into the least hazardous condition as quickly as possible. Now that the ships were undocked and the personnel safe, it was time to end the mission.

  “Environment Control to Nunet Control, emergency shutdown completed. Backup power is operational.”

  Narmer could see on the vid view of the hub that the mechs were no longer moving. Emergency lighting and other systems were running in minimal modes, but without power in the hub, the mechs could not operate.

  “Nunet Control to Heeta Command, mission terminated.”

  “Heeta Command, affirmative. All Controllers perform mission ending functions. Mission meeting in a half-chirp.”

  “Heeta Command to Kamlee Control, prepare to rescue and recover station personnel.”

  “Kamlee Command, affirmative.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  “To begin with,” Jegit said, speaking to the response team as they met in the commons area down the passageway from the comms section, “I want to congratulate you on a successful mission. You were able to get the final shuttles processed, and the Kamlee loaded. I know that you are all feeling confused, tired and stressed out. These are not normal times or conditions for any of us. So, again, congratulations.”

  “Let’s start with an update. The final shuttle was able to dock with the Kamlee and is continuing to offload its cargo. It will take a while, but they will get it done. When completed, Kamlee will send that shuttle home and then follow us to Chon-su.”

  “An update down on Kepteyn, the news is not good. I’m sure you’ve been watching the newsfeeds. A large segment of our society has gone on an anger and drugged fueled rampage. Public facilities, buildings, and other properties have been overrun and ransacked. Some of the facilities were destroyed by explosives and fires. The killing of citizens as peaked for now, either because some people started shooting back or the various factions have killed each other off. We expect more of the same once Prominence departs, but for now, things are calming down a little.”

  “I know almost all of us have left behind people that we care for. I can only remind you that we are here because of them, and for them. We must succeed, or all will be in vain.”

  “This brings me to the next topic. The destruction of Nunet and the troubles you ran into during the shuttle recovery mission. It is apparent that there are certain individuals or small groups that want to thwart the Pilgrim Project. There are some indications that the main target is Vanguard. The current theory is that for personal or philosophical reasons, Vanguard needs to be destroyed or prevented from departing. The perpetrators are still with us as the problem with the mechs on Nunet’s hub demonstrated. The intelligence and security sections are attempting to track these people down.”

  “Most of you will continue to be involved as controllers for different sections and departments. So, keep your eyes, ears, and minds open to anything that is of note. Report anything that seems odd or out of place to your commands ranks. No matter how small or insignificant that it may seem.”

  “It is almost midset, and we are all wrung out from the events of this rea. Get some sleep. The next rise is a busy one; we depart for Chon-su at six chirps. If you aren’t scheduled to be on duty, be prepared for ship maneuvers then.”

  “Dismissed.”

  Narmer was ready for bed. But then he realized that with all of the activity for this ria, he hadn’t found his new quarters. And he thought that it was too late to start a vid con with Deides, no need to wake her. He was looking for Ilka to ask how to find his berthing space when he saw Jegit headed over towards him.

  “Narmer, I’d like to talk with you for a twentynauk or so.”

  “Sure. Since I don’t know where I’m going, I guess I could stay here a bit longer.”

  With a tight smile, Jegit explained, “I wanted to congratulate you on your work getting the Kamlee loaded and safe. Even watching the after-action reports, it is still amazing that you were able to anticipate what was happening in time to save the shuttle and Kamlee. A lot of people are in your debt. Especially Vanguard. Without Kamlee, their departure and journey would have been severely hampered. You’ve already made history at the beginning of our people’s new story.”

  “As to where you are headed, you can find your quarters by checking the personnel directory on the ship cinc. Everyone is listed with their berth designations. This ship is commanded as a Home Guard facility, so certain information is classified. But basic personnel info is available as we are all on the same team. Or we are supposed to be.”

  He continued, “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. When you called me to report that you were following a suspicious blue suited individual, you definitely got some attention. My controller had queued your messages to me for later access as I was on a hunt of my own. But when you said that you were actually following someone, well that bumped the priority quite a bit. I have to recommend that you don’t do that again without letting me know beforehand. We are dealing with very deadly people, and you aren’t exactly trained for intelligence or security work. But…I do want to propose some things to you next rise. I think that you can help me with my searching.”

  “Help? How?”

  “I’ll lay it all out at our next risemeal. Meet me in the nearby galley at seven chirps. Come alone,” and Jegit then turned and made his way out of the commons area.

  “This ria was exciting enough. I was hoping to spend some time with Deides on the next rise…” Narmer mumbled to himself.

  He thumbed open is p-tab and got logged onto the ship cinc. He looked himself up and found where his, and Deides’, quarters were. Bringing up a map, he could see that it showed his current location and his path to his quarters. The berthing areas were a couple of decks up, closer to the ship’s hull. Not too far from where he was now.

  Hand grabbing his way down the passageway, Narmer could see others heading in a similar direction. Midset had just passed, so a lot of people were getting off duty and heading to their quarters. He followed the flow of bodies to the hatch of a transport tube. The tubes were evenly spaced around the ship's core, similar to the spokes on the station. The transport tubes ran from the hull to the core hub, with transport pod traffic running up and down the passages. The t-pods carried supplies, people, equipment, etc. between decks, or to and from the central core which was the main supply stores for the ship.

  Narmer consulted the directions on his p-tab and waited for the correct pod to arrive. Getting on with som
e fellow passengers, he hooked a foot as he noticed others were doing, and the t-pod began its trek to his level. Looking out the transparent sides and top of the pod, he was able to see his motion relative to the ship. The tube looked long from where he was observing, and he was already half-way down it. He could also see into the various decks as they went past the open hatches. Glimpses of other people going about their business. Some are starting their shifts, others ending. Looking into one hatch, he saw what looked like a tended estate garden. He’d have to come back to check that out at some point.

  The t-pod stopped at his deck hatch. Narmer unhooked and grabbed his way through the hatch, and out into the passageway where his berth was located. He moved down the passageway looking for his entrance. He found his location number and stopped in front of the hatch. He paused, he didn’t know how to get in. There was a vid screen built into the right side of the hatch. He touched it, and it lit up. There he saw instructions on how to gain entry. He placed his thumb on the designated spot, and his DNA was scanned for verification.

  The hatch iris opened, and Narmer floated into the room. He looked around the room. Pretty basic, a hygiene station located right inside the door. Then a combined seating and minimal food prep area. The food prep area had drink dispensers and packaged food. There was a large vid on the wall. The light level was low, with a hint of blue. At the back of the room, there was a closed door which he thought must be the sleeping area. Narmer noticed a few personal items on one of the chairs.

  “Deides must have been here earlier. And she may be sleeping,” Narmer said to himself as he approached the door.

  Opening the door as quietly as possible, he stuck his head in and saw Deides sitting up in the bed, staring right at him.

  “Well, hello, my spal,” she said, “I was wondering if I ever was going to see you again.”

  “It has been a ria for the ages. I’m still reeling from the events and emotions,” Narmer replied.

  With a sly smile, “I’ve been reading the crew updates sent out by the command staff. Very impressive Narmer, didn’t know you had it in you.”

  “To be honest, had someone told me what I was going to be doing all this ria, I would have tried to get out of it. But now, I feel like I truly did some small thing that would have an effect on people. A new feeling for me.”

  “Right now, it’s a big thing; everyone knows your name. No telling how long that will last, but for now, you will be a wanted man. Come here and let me show you how much I want you.”

  Narmer looked at her for a few nauks. “What’s gotten into her? Could it honestly be because she thinks I have some notoriety? Is that it?” he thought to himself. But then, it has been a hectic few rias and with of tension. He really could use a release.

  Starting to undress, it became obvious that he didn’t have the skills yet to do that in zero-gravities. Especially with an audience. Hooking a foot in a handhold, he started peeling off his green ship suit. The ship suit had been on him all ria, and he hoped that its self-deodorizing capabilities would suffice, he wasn’t delaying getting into bed!

  Deides was still watching him, with some amusement. Narmer pushed off and headed for the bed. He landed and bounced into Deides. She grabbed him, and they wrapped arms around each other. The bedding was keeping Deides anchored, so Narmer climbed in too.

  Looking into her eyes, he leaned in and kissed her. Her mouth was hungry for his. She squeezed him tighter, and the kiss got even more intense. As she pulled back just a little, Deides was able to get a breath. Narmer slowly pushed her down and their two bodies intertwined. Their joining was intense, a little frantic. And over too soon.

  Narmer gave Deides a little room as he rested and got his breathing under control. She looked at him, “Don’t think that you’ve finished yet. I’ve never joined in zero-gravities! Lots of ideas I want to try out. I’ve had a few chirps in here by myself to think of some things.”

  She grabbed the bedding and tossed it free. Starting with a kiss, she began to give Narmer directions and hints. For the next chirp, they tried everything that they could imagine. Some failing, some succeeding, but all of it was enjoyable.

  Narmer and Deides finally faded to sleep at almost three chirps.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  The lights came on and started flashing. Narmer covered his eyes with his hands trying to block out the light. He was blinded, fumbling around when the announcement came over the vid screens that the ship was about to begin its transition to cruise mode and begin accelerating towards Chon-su. During his training, he remembered seeing that it was OK to be in bed when this happened, but to make sure to be strapped in. The beginning of the rotation of the ship to provide simulated gravity wasn’t the problem. It was sliding out of bed and getting smashed up against the header during acceleration and deceleration. The head of the bed, would rise forty-five degrees to provide support to the body.

  Narmer, leaned over the edge of the bed to dig out the harnesses that were stowed in a compartment underneath the bed. He opened the compartment with the word ‘Harness’ spelled out on it. Opening the compartment door caused him to start to float off of the bed. He grabbed the bedding in his left hand and grabbed the harnesses with his right. Doing so, pulled the bedding off Deides.

  “Tikt! Again! You are terrible at this waking up thing,” Deides groused, “and no gaberry either…”

  “We are a little too late for that. The ship will start to spin up the hull, followed shortly by an acceleration period of about a half-chirp.”

  “Here, take this harness, and let’s get strapped in before we get to know what a pressed gaberry feels like,” Narmer instructed.

  Helping Deides first, Narmer got her strap connected to the hard points around the bed, before securing his own. The head of the bed began to rise.

  Laying strapped to the bed, they could only turn their heads to look at each other.

  Deides started to laugh, “You sure know how to romance a woman.”

  “Yeah, well, you seemed pretty happy about my romance technique a few chirps ago.”

  Slowly they could feel themselves begin to sink into the bed as the ship spun up to eventually provide one Kepteyn gravity on the highest decks at the hull. They were located a few decks below in the habitation section, but it was close enough. They wouldn’t achieve full gravity for a few chirps; the ship took its time to get to maximum spin. This was to prevent any injuries or damage from things not completely secured. Also, it minimized the number of people that would be affected by motion sickness. While not preventing motion sickness, it did drastically reduce it.

  Acceleration was a different matter. For approximately a half-chirp, the mass impellors and the plasma drives would quickly ramp up to full throttle and hold there for the duration of that time. Then the mass impellors would be taken offline, and a much softer, continuous acceleration would be maintained until the turn around point. The turnaround point was half-way to their destination. There, the ship would flip ends, and the plasma drive thrust would be pointed at their target as a slow deceleration would begin. For the final half-chirp, the mass impellors would provide maximum thrust to slow the ship so that it could enter orbit around Chon-su.

  For both maximum thrust periods, being strapped in somewhere for safety was a necessity. This was a compromise amongst comfort and thrust and engine efficiency. Ideally, for time, maximum thrust would be used the entire trip, but everyone would have to be strapped down the whole time.

  At full thrust, the trip would take just under one ria, nineteen chirps. Too long to be tied up. With the modified thrust schedule, the trip would take twice as long, almost two rias. With the bonus of a normal ship life.

  Narmer and Deides were therefore truly stuck for the acceleration phase.

  “Sweetness, I have plans for us this ria. There are people that I want you to meet.” Deides said, thinking out loud.

  Narmer, looking forward to it, “No problem, that would be fun. I do have a risemeal meeting w
ith Jegit in a chirp, but we could meet after that.”

  “Why can’t I go with you? I like Jegit, and I’m hungry too.”

  Trying to think why she couldn’t go, other than telling her because Jegit said so, “It is an operational meeting. Systems, schedules, etc. Not all that interesting. You’d be bored. But I will come back, and we’ll spend the ria making your tour.”

  “My ‘tour’ is obviously not that important to you. And now you don’t want me around. Things getting to your head already?” Deides huffed.

  “It’s not that at all. I just have this meeting. It will be relatively short, a chirp at most. Then you can have your ria.”

  “First it was my ‘tour,’ now my ‘ria,’ sorry that you have to spend your ria with me.”

  “No, really, I want it to be about us. I’ve wanted time for us ever since the joining. Things have definitely gotten in the way. But we can spend the time now.”

  “No, I’m fine. Do your little thing. I’ll occupy myself.”

  Closing her eyes, she ignored any further entreaties from Narmer.

  The max acceleration cut out. Narmer was relived as the harness was digging into some naked, tender spots. He unclipped his harness and reached to help Deides with hers.

  Pulling away from him, “I’ve got it. You get the hygiene station first, just toss me my p-tab from the chair, or wherever it ended up.”

  Narmer looked at her for a few nauks. Sighed and got up. He felt a little unsteady. The diameter of the ship was much smaller than the diameter of the station so that he could feel the spin a bit. There was also the added horizontal push from the acceleration. There was a slight continuous feeling of being thrown off balance.

  He walked to the sleeping quarters door, grabbing his p-tab that was pushed up against the door on what was now decidedly the ‘floor.’ He opened the door and entered the sitting area. He could see that Deides’ p-tab was up against the unit’s hatch. He walked over and picked it up. He inadvertently thumbed it, and it lit up. There were notifications waiting for her. But since the p-tabs could only be opened by the owner, he couldn’t see who they were from. “She must be making friends,” he thought, “She’s no longer on a logistics duty rotation. I’ll make it up to her; the whole ria is in front of us. Can’t waste it.”