by Hylton Smith
“I’m no Volker Brandt, I’m not even a business man. You’re right, I don’t crave wealth, I recoil from accumulation of money purely as a measure of my success, and I’m not driven simply by outperforming competitive organisations. I get my fix by solving problems which others can’t. I have to ask, are you really sure about all this? I have never seen myself as your successor.”
“That’s precisely why you are the right man, Julien. I know that you will always go the extra mile to solve this wretched asteroid problem, and all I’m saying is that you need a helping hand. Knowing exactly what the other members of the clique are really doing, as well as hearing what they say they are, is an absolute necessity, even if you decide to go along with what they tell you. Wish me well my friend, we may never see each other again.”
Chapter 10
The launch itself went smoothly, but for billions of people it was a bittersweet image they witnessed on TV. Christopher Columbus had set off on his historic journey with only one aim, but he discovered something of much more importance in shaping the world he lived in. Brandt already had two objectives, but both were tied to a single cause. Danger was implicit for both of these men, but at least Columbus knew that if he failed, he would simply revert to being a person of little notoriety. He didn’t have the end of the world as his primary taskmaster.
The onlookers seemed to struggle with Brandt’s personal sacrifice, his no-win situation. He had bequeathed everything he’d built during his life to give the species a second chance – one which demanded a lot more respect for the planet which had sustained the lives of its inhabitants. He was sixty-seven years old, and the odds were seriously stacked against him surviving the trip to Mars, let alone seeing the Earth prevail, if that was indeed achieved. They didn’t want him to leave. He’d counted on that.
The Crew
Arnold Muller, at thirty-nine, had edged out a host of superbly qualified astronauts to be given the nominal captaincy of the mission. He was respected without being particularly popular with the rest of the crew. Brandt had been a little surprised at the choice himself, but had agreed to the final decision being left in the hands of experts. Muller simply topped the overall ratings and scored exceptionally well when placed under psychological stress. He then had a certain amount of input into the selection of the remaining crew.
He stressed his need for a first officer with the backbone to challenge his decisions when necessary, subjecting all alternatives to the rigours of logic – nothing more and nothing less. He was a man who had difficulty with subordinates resorting to emotional judgements, even in situations of extreme stress. However, he was as compassionate as any father could be in dealing with aberrant juvenile behaviour in his family life. Apparently this equated to a potentially unruly crew in the eyes of the selection committee.
Deborah Winchester wouldn’t have been Muller’s first choice, but then neither would he have been the obvious captain for Brandt. She could at times appear to be devoid of sensitivity when there were changes in plan, to the point of being attributed the mind of an android. She’d never married, didn’t want children, and as far as anyone knew she’d never had a serious ‘relationship’ with another human. This fascinated Brandt, as he had never married, but later in life admitted that he missed not having any children. He was slightly concerned that his experts had got this one wrong.
The role of chief engineer had been a much easier decision than the rest. Hiro Kenji was the outstanding candidate, matching electronic genius with a surprising hands-on ability to conjure up mechanical solutions to hardware problems. A cutting sense of humour was never far away, and he’d dreamt of stepping on another planet since he was able to talk; he had allegedly talked about nothing else as a kid. He wasn’t the tidiest person in the world but remembered where everything was at any given time.
In terms of knowledge, Nina Knudsen had been second in the rankings for the science officer’s position. She was elevated to the crew because of a serious infection suffered by Martin Cooper-Levey. Because of Nina’s mother being Russian, Brandt had insisted that a second clearance procedure was conducted without her knowledge. The possibility of connections to Soyuz had been in Brandt’s mind ever since he’d known of their attempt to beat him to Mars. All was well, and Nina relished the opportunity to employ her considerable biochemical skills on Martian dust and rocks.
Both software expertise and routine communications were to be under the control of Hans Back. Half Swiss and half Swedish, he surprisingly beat other more experienced candidates in the tests. The speed of his mental processing ability shaded him ahead of many disappointed rivals. The only concern had been his ability to explain the reasons for certain decisions he took. He found difficulty dumbing down the technical explanations to other crew members. He seemed to be allergic to layman’s terms. He found it irritatingly tedious to continually translate his byte-speak, yet he had undergone intensive extra training to improve this aspect of his profile. In the final analysis, the positive aspect of getting to the core of a problem much quicker than his main rivals won over the selectors.
And then there was Brandt himself. He offered no expertise other than reminding everyone else in the crew that he was aware of his limitations, physically and technically. He wanted no special treatment and would see that nobody else did either. He basically asked to be ignored, except when he had need to communicate with Julien Delacroix, in which case he would require priority and privacy.
Altogether, an eclectic mix of personalities to establish the first human bridgehead on an alien world. During the years of intense training following their selection, none of them wanted to be kicked off the mission or get anyone else into trouble. But that was to be a simulation exercise. Brandt wondered about how they would gel in reality, especially in the face of adversity. He took it upon himself to become the ‘go to’ psychologist, not by any announcement, but by encouragement and arms-length mentoring.
*
Something Brandt hadn’t counted on winged its way through near Earth space to the vessel, aptly named Kepler. The password protected video transmission was from Julien.
‘Volker, sorry to trouble you with housekeeping issues, but we have picked up telemetric and system checks which indicate propulsion data of Kepler is not quite what we expected. It’s still within nominal specification, and maybe it will settle down once the vessel recedes from Earth gravity. The curve of velocity relative to mission time will be further evaluated at the prescribed coordinates. You might want to get Kenji to send us your readings as soon as you can, just to make sure that we still have correlation. I know you guys have only just pulled out of Earth orbit, but better safe than sorry. I’m also aware of your concern about outside influences, and I’ve seen nothing on your office ‘flight deck’ here to worry about, so I believe the marginal variation will self-correct. Julien.’
*
Before Brandt could shake off the G-force effects, Kenji and Captain Muller asked to speak with him. Brandt got in first.
“I assume the urgency is because Hans Back has done what I asked and made you aware of the gist of Delacroix’s message. I have to confess, I don’t fully understand what he said. I’m a simple man and I tend to think in black and white. Either there is a problem or there isn’t. But he said he wasn’t sure. What do you make of his concern?”
Muller told Kenji to explain.
“Well, sir, he’s probably right insofar as we used more fuel getting through the bumpier weather when we blasted through the atmosphere. However, the propulsion unit is well over-specified, and anyway, fuel consumption is one thing, engine efficiency is another. I’ve already started my own diagnostics and we’ll soon have solid information to assess. That is important because there is a slight possibility that a minor problem can develop into a more serious one. We need to know if our diagnostics match up with those of mission control.”
“Right, so what if they do?”
“We will need to do specific checks, some of w
hich could require an EVA, sorry… that means extra vehicular activity.”
“And if they don’t?”
“If there isn’t agreement we either have a software problem in mission control or on Kepler. I would prefer it to be back home.”
“So, which checks would require an EVA?”
Muller intervened.
“This is all speculation at present, sir. However, if we find a problem which justifies an EVA, it would almost certainly indicate a hardware glitch. That’s something we really don’t want to contemplate at the moment, because if propulsion efficiency becomes highly variable we would find it difficult to arrive at Mars orbit insertion coordinates at the optimal time. If we were to miss that window completely we could risk heading on out of the solar system over the next few years. Thrust is the only way we can adjust velocity. Kenji can elaborate on this.”
Hiro Kenji began nervously.
“Yes, if we have a problem it’s crucial that we know as soon as possible, because we would have to calculate a new burn schedule and implement it, hoping the propulsion problem does not get worse. We have scope to increase and decrease thrust to reset the velocity curve as long as the engine efficiency stays within specification. My primary concern would materialise if we suffer permanent serious under-thrust capability. We wouldn’t then be capable of making up lost time. Anyway, the sooner we know if there is a problem, the easier it will be to get back on the correct trajectory. Because if we don’t, we could…sorry, I don’t want to think about that. We don’t have sufficient life support commodity to survive an effectively rudderless journey which doesn’t meet up with Mars. However, if that did happen, we may get lucky and collide with something in the asteroid belt, which would truncate the anxiety, you know, instant lights out.”
Brandt forced a smile and patted Kenji on the back. Muller wagged his finger at the Japanese engineer, indicating he should not be so frivolous. Brandt eased the tension.
“Fine, let’s respond when we know the facts, Hiro, and keep me posted through Captain Muller.”
They parted, each of them looking considerably calmer than they felt.
*
Julien had expected an immediate response of some kind, even a simple acknowledgement, surely. The delay created an annoying mental void, which set off an altogether different train of thought. He couldn’t help regurgitating the moment when Brandt told him that he was now very rich, in control of his own destiny, except for him now being totally responsible for prolonging the longevity of the species. He hadn’t told Elise or the kids exactly how much wealth he’d inherited. He somehow thought it would devalue his stock with them. He’d always made it clear to them that his life was never going to be about materialism. That wasn’t going to fit well with a disclosure that he was now the richest person on the planet, no matter how much he pleaded that Brandt had given him no choice. It was bound to alter many aspects of the rest of their lives, whether that was fifty or a meagre ten years. 2039 had become a double-edged sword of Damocles, neither side less sharp than the other.
Being jolted back into action mode, he sent a repeat message, asking for confirmation of receipt, because there should have been little or no time delay with communications. This time it went direct to Muller. Settling back into Brandt’s leather swivel chair, he engaged with the screens, feeling decidedly out of his depth with his additional inherited remit of espionage.
Chapter 11
Muller’s response to Julien was prompt but concise.
‘I’d be grateful if you would address all communications to me, Delacroix. I’ll make sure that Volker Brandt sees all relevant transmissions, but I have to remind you that the safety and command of this vessel rests with me. Herr Brandt is basically a passenger, even though he called the shots on Earth. You also need to remember that he took the place of a person with expertise from whom we could have benefitted. I may need to authorise an EVA if your data correlates with Kenji’s diagnostics. I can’t send Brandt out on that one. I hope I make myself clear. As soon as we have full diagnostics you will be apprised. Muller out.’
The tone of this written riposte worried Julien and he contemplated asking Brandt to muzzle Muller, but he took a deep breath and decided it was time to let Elise know of the change in his financial status. Her phone rang interminably and he was about to put the receiver down.
“Hello,” said a breathless Geraldine.
“Hi, it’s Julien, is Elise there?”
“Yes, she’s just getting the shopping from the car, I’ll get her.”
Eventually he heard the patter of shoes on the wooden floor of the hallway.
“Julien, hi, I was going to call you. Both Eugene and Sophie told me that you have been promoted by Herr Brandt and you are now the senior executive of VB Aerospace. Congratulations.”
“Well, that’s only half of the story. I’m afraid you won’t like the other part, so I’ll just say it straight out. Brandt doesn’t expect to return, and he insisted on leaving VB Aerospace to me, all of it. I refused, but he is a very persuasive man and he wore down my objections to his intent. It still grates with my conscience, such obscene wealth, but he made me promise to run the operation in exactly the way he had. He wasn’t really interested in money anymore. So, I wanted to talk to you about the possibility of the family being reunited once more. I know you had problems with the climate here, and there were other issues, but now that our vessel Kepler is on its way to Mars, the countdown to 2039 begins in earnest. Even if you can’t face being here permanently, we should be together when crunch time comes, especially if I fail to blow the asteroid off course. My salary alone now means you can afford to fly in the comfort of first class, and I’m thinking of having a property built with every mod-con imaginable. I know that the kids were going to ask you to spend more time with us but they don’t yet know just how much this ‘unwelcome fortune’ I’ve inherited amounts to. Workwise, I have a great new opportunity for Eugene to consider, and I think Sophie could use some help with getting her talent back to its best. Could you think about this please? And if you think it’s appropriate, tell Geraldine that she’s included. Well…I mean if that’s something you would both like to do together.”
“There’s something you need to know, Julien. I’ve been dreading…well, worrying about how to bring it up. I’ve met someone. I wasn’t looking… you know. Damn, I’m just hopeless with stuff like this. It’s just a casual friendship at the moment, but I do like him and I was going to tell you the next time we were face-to-face. Perhaps it would be good for me and my sister to come to see you and the kids pretty soon, and we can talk more… more openly than using the phone. How about that?”
“Uh, yes, I err, well, that would be fine with me. Do the kids know about this guy?”
“No, even Geraldine doesn’t know, at least I don’t think she does. It’s better that way, at least for now.”
“Right, well, I hardly know what to say. I suppose I’m trying to believe you haven’t actually told me. It suddenly feels as if I’ve brought this on myself. Anyway, as you said it’s difficult to talk about it on the phone, I need to be close to you. So, in that case, can you let me know when you’d like to come and I’ll fix up the accommodation. Then I’ll tell Eugene and Sophie to make sure they can be free when you arrive.”
“Ok, I really feel ashamed now, but either I had to…end it or get it off my chest. It has been like living a lie. I don’t know what else…maybe I should have waited until I got there, I’m so confused. Anyway, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Take care.”
He felt disoriented, Elise had never seemed so detached. Julien Delacroix’s hand began to shake as he reached for his pen. All of a sudden it hit him. The life he’d led had imposed the self-same detachment on his incredibly tolerant wife. Elise had accepted his dedication to his work for decades without ever complaining. He belatedly felt so selfish, never having asked her what she would like to dedicate her life to, other than the kids. She had always just got o
n with all of the mundane stuff like paying bills, keeping the place neat and tidy, tending to the garden and socialising with her unmarried sister. She was right to have reminded him that she could have been a professional dancer, but he’d stupidly rationalised that as frivolous compared to charting rocks floating around the Cosmos. He hoped this was a wake-up call rather than an irreconcilable situation. And yet he had previously dismissed her hints about wanting a divorce.
*
Hiro Kenji stared blankly at his diagnostic readouts. Everything was normal. He grabbed those transmitted by mission control and scratched his head while mumbling to himself. ‘This is crazy, the skipper is going to think I’m crazy. We are using the same equipment, well, the same kind of equipment, so this has to be a software malfunction, hiccup, or corruption at one end. But which end? I’ll have to run the test again and ask Delacroix to do the same, so that we each have two dots on the chart to compare’.
He went to Muller, who was equally puzzled. He told Kenji to run another scan while he went to talk with Hans Back.
“It’s just as well you are handling communications and software, Hans. Hiro is doing another diagnostics right now, but we don’t seem to have the same data output as mission control. I’d like you to think about software glitches before we send our data back to Earth. Let’s just keep this under wraps for now. There’s no point in panicking everyone if there isn’t really anything wrong.”
“Ok, boss, I’ll get on it immediately. Give me a couple of hours. I know, two hours is a pisser but we have a pretty complex system to check out thoroughly.”
*
Julien’s mind was constantly shifting from saving the planet to saving his marriage, when something on one of his spy screens caught his attention. A flashing red signal was followed by the appearance of Ivan Kolorov. He turned up the volume.
‘Ok, Delacroix, things didn’t turn out the way I was told they would by Brandt. It was unfortunate for me, but convenient for VB Aerospace. You got valuable information without having to pay the bill. Now I have something of even more importance to you. But this time I won’t accept promises, it has to be action, backed up with legal documentation. Call this number from a public phone if you want to know more, then if you want to take it further, I can come to Guiana.’
