by Casey Herzog
Rising from his cot, Peter yawned and stretched. As he always did, he looked at his hand clenching and unclenching his fist, then wriggling his fingers. He still held a morbid fear that at any moment one of his digits might suddenly decide to slip off. Even though the stitches were now out and mobility had returned as much as it was ever going to, he still could not shake the feeling his fingers were missing. He felt fragile, like a broken plate mended with glue; serviceable but weakened.
He dressed quietly, trying his best not to wake the others. It was still the rest period for the cohort, and Alphred and the others still had another twenty minutes rest time. As soon as he was dressed, Peter left the room, wincing as the light from the corridor flooded the darkened room. The transition from calm dark to bright, unforgiving light hurt his retinas, and he rubbed his eyes on reflex.
“You look terrible.”
His vision blurred, Peter followed the voice till he found Minerva against the corridor wall, arms folded tightly across her chest. “Good morning to you too. You up just to see me?”
Minerva nodded. She smiled, but it wasn't her natural smile. Her lips were too thin. “Chief Scott did say you should be able to return to active duty this week. I wanted to come along for support, fight your corner if she tries to bully you into more rest time.”
Peter laughed and ran a hand through his hair. “Who knows, maybe I still need more rest. I am in a very delicate state.”
Minerva thumped him in the arm, causing him to wince. “You're growing soft. Left to the cleaning and maintenances rosters I wouldn't be surprised if your muscles have shrunk away to nothing.”
“Well, my tolerance for pain has certainly taken a beating, that really hurt.”
“Good.” Minerva's smile began to take on a more natural form now, much to Peter's relief. “Too many people are treating you like a charity case at the moment. You need someone to ground you and remind you you're a soldier.”
Peter began to walk down the corridor. “I guess all the sympathy and goodwill I've been getting will be going out the airlock once I return to active duty.”
Following step alongside him, Peter could feel Minerva's eyes study him. “You're going to miss it? I thought you were proud to be the outcast. It makes us special, right.” The way she asked the question put Peter on edge. There was something strained in her voice, like she wanted validation from him.
“I'm not looking to be the sore thumb in the cohort. I'm not going to apologize to anyone, or change myself in order to get their approval, but that doesn't mean I want to be on the fringes of the group.”
Peter couldn't sugar coat his answer for her.
Minerva stopped in her tracks, momentarily frozen in place. Then, just as quickly, she moved again. Now though, she seemed to be intertwining her fingers in an odd manner.
“Is something wrong Min?” Peter just came out and asked the question. “You don't think just because I'm more accepted I'm going to suddenly change my attitude toward you? We're still partners you and I, bound to forever pick up our illustrious commander's messes.”
Minerva straightened her back. She took a deep breath, and ruffled Peter's hair roughly. “Sometimes you know just the right thing to say to cheer a girl up.”
Peter laughed, but could not help feeling a little uneasy. He was glad no one from their cohort was around to see them like this. “So, if I get the all clear today to return to active duty, what's on the agenda?”
Minerva grinned as they stopped by the hatch leading down into the rest of the ship. Descending down the ladder, she looked up at him. “EVA testing today. Simulated damage to the hull from either an asteroid collision or battle damage. You've picked a good day to return to work.”
Peter grimaced. He was out of practice in a lot of fields, and EVA would throw him in right past the deep end and into the open ocean. It almost came as a disappointment when Chief Scott declared him fit for service. He didn't dare question her authority on the matter, but if he were still on Earth, he might have tried to claim one last day of sick leave to avoid a test.
As Pluto Cohort stood for morning inspection, a small cheer went out as they noticed Peter take his place in line with them. The guy next to him gave him a friendly nudge and Nisha offered her own congratulations, asking if he felt ready for his return to active duty. Though he wouldn't say it out loud, Peter was relieved to find the good will his team had lent to him over the last weeks did not vanish the moment he was declared fit for duty.
As he followed the rest of the cohort to the suits chamber, he tried to remember everything he could about EVA maintenance work. It was not his strong point. He preferred the theatrics and adrenaline of Zero-G combat to EVA repairs. As he tried to snatch at all the possible memories and study sessions that might help him, he realized his brain had become a colander. Every bit of information he remembered just fell through the holes in his mind so that he was left blank and oblivious.
“Hey, you're going to okay.”
“Thanks Min, but be prepared if I strike out.” Peter looked to his left as he spoke, cheek flushing red as he realized the person he had addressed was not actually Minerva.
Nisha smirked. “Ohh, someone on your mind distracting you?”
Peter's eyes glanced across the changing bay to Minerva. It seemed the Martian had heard them, so had several others. A host of smiles and grins met him as well as a concerned look from Alphred. “No, I'm fine,” Peter insisted. He tried to think of a way to quickly change the conversation topic.
“What are you betting it'll be? I reckon they're going to simulate some damage to the oxygen supply.”
Nisha's smirk didn't leave her face, but she seemed willing to put her teasing aside. “Yeah, though it's a little obvious to go down that route. I'm going to say power generator systems damaged and a hard time limit on all equipment shutting down.”
Peter thought about that scenario. “It's dark, it would kill us all and is completely terrifying to think of...I'd say you might be right on that one.”
As Peter put on his helmet and locked it to the rest of his suit, Alphred came over the intercom to the team. “Okay, mission debrief has come through from the chiefs. We have one hour to complete the task from the moment we step outside. We will find simulated workstations already set up at various points on our navs, and we will have to operate in two teams. Minerva and I, having the most experience in all EVA work, will lead these teams, but remember to work for yourself. We will get nowhere fast if our com lines are jammed up with questions.” The others all nodded inside their helmets. “Minerva, who do you want to take in your squad?”
“I'll take Peter...” At the quick mention of his name, Peter felt Nisha nudging his shoulder. Though he could not see clearly into her helmet, he could guess how wide the grin on her face would be. He tried to pay it no heed, listening instead to the rest of her picks. When Nisha's name was called, he took the opportunity to nudge her in turn. He had to admit, this simple feeling of camaraderie felt good, and he hoped it was not all in his mind.
The exercise proved difficult. As the teams scrambled over the hull with their thrusters, the chief engineer came over the coms to 'report' that an impact had knocked out most systems on the Unity, including life support and navigation. The first task, before they even got to work on the control points set up, was to figure out which of the systems were most essential for reactivation.
“If we don't get oxygen back on, we're as good as dead!”
Minerva shook her head at the comment from one of the girls. “Don't get ahead of yourself. We have enough oxygen circulating around the Unity and hydroponics on our side. Unless there is a serious breach in the hull, we're not running out of air.”
“Well, what if there is a hull breach somewhere the chiefs expect us to find?” Nisha asked the question hesitantly.
“Well, we won't know that until we get main power reconnected. Focus on the getting main power back on to the bridge, then they can then advise us as to which other relays are in need
of repair.”
“Yes, Commander.” Nisha knelt down at the simulation console bolted to the Unity's hull. It contained a perfect replica of some of the actual interiors of the ship; only, it was not actually connected to any real systems.
“Here, I'll help you get the plating off, looks like it's buckled.” Peter drew alongside Nisha and helped her pry open the metal casing of the electronics.
“Hey, be careful, both of you. Don't use your hands like cavemen. If the metal rips your suit...” Minerva fussed over them like a mother hen, purposefully coming between them and using rebar to fully open up the systems.
“Sorry Tharsis,” Nisha answered meekly.
Peter bit his bottom lip and opened a private com channel. “Don't let it get you down. When the chief's pick us up on the error in grading, just tell them it was my fault. Always worked in the past.”
Nisha turned her helmet towards him. He wished he could have seen her face clearly so he could have some indication of how she was feeling. “Come on, I never did that to you.”
“Well, maybe not you...but...never mind.” Peter took a deep breath and returned his attention to the open console. “Can't get into reminiscing now. We've got a ship to save.”
Nisha nodded and shone her light onto the exposed systems.
There was something to be said for Nisha's intuition. Though she could not possibly have known it from a cursory glance, her gut instinct that there was a hull breach somewhere turned out to be right on point. In fact, there were several. After nearly twenty minutes of coaxing systems to life, Minerva was able to make calculated guesses as to where the faults were on the ship and sent members of her squad out in pairs to make the repairs. With Alphred's team doing the same, Pluto Cohort were spread all over the outer hull, soldering, welding, and reattaching mock-ups of critical systems. At a guess, the damage reflected in this simulation reflected scouring by disintegrated asteroid debris travelling at high speed.
“How are we doing?” Minerva sent the message on a private channel to Peter.
“Well, Nisha and I are at the faulty line now and sealing the cracked chamber venting our oxygen. I'd say we've got it easier than those trying to rewire the ripped electronics on the solar panels.”
“I'm not asking about that doofus; I was talking about your hand. Are you okay?”
“I'm fine, Min, don't make such a fuss. Concentrate on the assignment.”
There was a sound over the com. Peter could tell what it was, but he guessed it wasn't good. He noticed the private com link flash as disconnected in the corner of his helmet's screen. Had he touched a nerve? He didn't have time to think about it now.
“Okay, Nisha, sorry I zoned for a moment there, tell me what we've got. The oxygen is venting pretty badly from three gashes in the piping. We're going to need to cut away the edges and put down something to use as a temporary seal...” She took a deep breath, “Only trouble is we don't have anything to use.”
Peter nodded, moving over to inspect other parts of the mock-up panel they were working on. “Well, in that case, we improvise. Help me tear off some of the sheet metal surrounding this section. We can coax it into shape over the hole and attempt to seal it over.”
“Handy in a pinch aren't you?” Nisha's compliment took Peter by surprise, and he fumbled for a response.
“Praise yourselves later, for now, make sure you can actually get this repair done. Pluto Cohort needs to make up for its short falls in other trials, in case you've forgotten.” Even on the other side of the Unity, Minerva was keeping her eyes on them. It unsettled Peter to hear her voice now. There was a distinct edge to it.
“We'll get it done,” he assured.
Removing the metal plate from non-essential sections of the simulated node was tougher than Peter had first anticipated. Even with the necessary tools, prying away the thick bolts against the clock was hard. Nisha wasn't much help, even though she wished to be. She lacked Peter's strength and took twice as much time as his partner in clearing the shard metal from around the ruptured air pipes. Peter left her to it, focusing on his own task and praying she’ll be finished by the time he was ready.
Alphred came over on the coms. “Good work out there Pluto, we're just waiting on three systems to be repaired. Peter, how’re the oxygen tanks looking?”
“We're getting there; can't rush progress.” He glanced down at Nisha. It was hard to tell how she was coping, but her hands kept slipping with the tools as she rushed to complete the task.
“We'll have it done, Commander.” Nisha made the promise in a strained voice that Peter didn't think inspired confidence.
“Peter, do you need me to send additional support to your location?”
“No, I've got this, just give us a few more...Shit!”
Peter looked down, wondering just what had happened. Nisha activated her suit's thrusters and pushed away from their simulation workstation. She still lacked finesse and flew out several meters before engaging her suit’s stop code. Now with her hanging above him, Peter noticed a plume of gas shooting out from her suit.
“Oh shit! Yeah, Commander, you're going to need to send a team over to finish this task, we've got a suit rupture here.” Activating his own thrusters, Peter flew up to where Nisha was floating and grabbed her. Her limbs were flailing about in a state of panic, her attention completely taken by the line cut in her suit. He had to calm her down.
“Nisha, come on, quit kicking out like that. Engage your mag locks and come down before you float off further.” His words didn't reach her. After waiting for a few seconds, Peter accepted she was not going to calm down and began to use more force. Treating her like an overgrown figurine, he put out her arm and engaged her suit's systems manually, sending them back down to the Unity's hull with a thud.
“Ow. Damn, that hurt.”
“I know, I don't have much finesse using someone else's suit. Quit squirming now, and let me see your rupture.”
“It's bad isn't it, I'm going to lose my oxygen supply. I'm going to drown in my suit. I'm drowning!”
Peter bit his lip as he looked at the gash on her arm. “You're not going to die, Nish, but you need to calm down for me. We have to get you back to the airlock. Do you understand me?” Peter grabbed her helmet, forcing her to look directly at him rather than at the venting hole. “Nisha, I need to know you understand. Repeat what we need to do for me.” Peter could feel her body shaking.
“Return to air lock...Return to the airlock...Got it.”
Peter looked back to their unfinished workstation as he applied adhesive tape over the gash. It wouldn't stop de-pressurization, but it'd hopefully slow it. “Alphred, send in whoever you can to finish the oxygen tanks, I am going back with her.”
Minerva suddenly came over on the coms. “That shouldn't be necessary. The rupture can't be that bad. Nisha, make your way to the airlock and let Peter finish the task. We're so close, guys.”
Nisha didn’t answer into the coms, but she shook her head, hands gripping at Peter in a plea that was unmistakable.
“No, I'm going back with her. I know she can probably make it herself, but I want to be sure.”
“Peter that's stupid, you're going to throw the challenge and-”
Before Minerva could voice any more objections, Alphred interrupted. “That's enough. I'd rather be over cautious with the safety of our cohort than risk their lives to a simulation. Peter, you have my authorization to proceed. Anyone nearby, get over to that valve they were working on. If we're lucky, we can still get this mission finished.
“I'm on it, I'll do it quicker than the others.” Once again, Minerva's voice held a harsh quality to it, almost bitter. Peter didn't have the time to worry about her feelings though.
Putting his arm about Nisha's shoulder, he unlocked his suit and engaged his thrusters. “Come on, you need to work with me here. I'll be telling you what to do all the way back to the airlock, okay?”
Nisha didn't seem capable of verbal response, but her hand sq
ueezed his arm in a way he took as a reply. A moment later, her thrusters engaged.
There was no danger to Nisha. Though any rupture sustained during EVA was dangerous, such damage was rarely fatal. All she needed was to remain calm and assured on her way back to the airlocks. Her panic and fear were the only real danger to her person. As soon as they were through the airlock, and Peter closed tight the door between themselves and the void, Nisha's tense body immediately slumped. She could not take off her suit straight away, but just the assurance of being back aboard the Unity seemed to be enough for her in that moment. When Peter floated over to her to check on her, he found himself wrapped up in a tight embrace, their helmets coming together with a thud.
In the debriefing room, Peter was relieved to find the eyes of the chiefs lacking their usual fierceness. With their faces not set in attack mode, he could only assume that they were happy with the cohort’s performance during the simulation.
“Well, no one will pretend it was a perfect mission. However, under the circumstances, I would say things went quite well. You managed to make repairs at all simulation stations within the allotted time and made the correct call when it came to crewman Nisha Goswami. Tharsis, as second and as a Martian, you should have known better than to suggest she go to the airlock alone after her suit ruptured. Goswami has a troubled record when it comes to EVA work as it is.”
