Intrepid

by Nate Johnson

  Younger and smarter than the rest, it was territory he was very familiar with. The young man silently prayed for salvation. If he could find… He froze, the numbers were different. His eyes repeatedly blinked, as he tried to clear them and insure it wasn’t wishful thinking. Yes! Maybe, YES! He had confirmation.

  “An M1 planet,” he yelled.

  The room paused as if it was a video feed from a bad source. Everyone studied the boy. Could he be joking? Would anyone be that cruel?

  Several of the students, and all of the teachers, glanced down at their computers screens and read the numbers. They ran the models and in every instance it confirmed an M1 planet in the life zone around a stable star.

  A shiver of excitement passed through the room like an electric shock, and everyone started talking at once.

  “Twenty-two percent oxygen, CO2 within limits.”

  “Zero point nine gravity.”

  “Two small moons.”

  “Hey, I’ve got water vapor.”

  “No emissions, nothing across the entire radio spectrum.”

  Every student was trying to be the first to find a new fact about this new world. All of them so focused on their little screens that none of them noticed the beautiful blue planet sitting at the center of the huge TV screen hanging on the wall.

  Worlds ran the gamete from black rocks buried in deep space, to gray/brown, lifeless entities barely formed afterthoughts. Still, others were giant clouds of gas with no permanence and a gravity well that would crush a Valdorian Pumpas into the size of a tea cup.

  But there, in front of them, hanging like a berry on a bush, was the second most beautiful thing Jonathan Pearce had ever seen. - Brenda Jacobs was the first -. A blue planet, with water, oxygen, inside the life zone.

  They were rich, they were famous. They would go down in history. It would belong to the Empire of course, but they would each get a nice chunk, free and clear. Everybody onboard a discovery vessel always got an even share. He wondered if he should go for a mineral rich area that could be exploited then abandoned, or a nice stately home overlooking a vast valley. Somewhere he could study and write in peace. Would a woman like Brenda like that kind of thing?

  Sitting back, he looked over at the spacer. He had stood up in his outside suite, arms crossed at the chest and a huge smile on his face. He caught Jonathan’s eyes and nodded his head in approval, as if to say, ‘good job kid.’ Jonathan's chest swelled, life couldn’t get better than this. He wondered if this was what sex was like.

  .o0o.

  The Rec deck was crowded with every soul onboard packed in. The watch standers from the bridge and engine room listening in.

  Crew and students alike were smiling and congratulating each other. All differences seemed to have melted away like August snow, gone before it arrived.

  Erik and his fellow shipmates came to attention when the Captain stepped into the room. The students quickly followed suit and Erik had to smile at himself, at least some good things were rubbing off.

  Captain Freeborn signaled for everyone to take their seats.

  “As you all know, we have discovered an M1 planet, a nine point five out of ten. It lost half a point because of its less than thirty percent land mass. But still, it appears to be an excellent candidate for eventual colonization by the Empire.” A cheer erupted from the crowd.

  “I wanted to lay out the schedule,” he continued after the room quieted a bit. “It will take a couple of days to reach orbit at which time we will begin scouting and mapping operations. Once I’m satisfied that it is safe enough, a team will be sent down to begin exploration. Cataloging of life, geological surveys, etc. We will be able to spend about a month on site before we have to start heading back. Even then, we may have to ration a little and dip into the emergency supplies. Are there any questions?”

  A dozen hands shot into the air as if reaching for the ceiling.

  The Captain acknowledged young Jonathan Pearce who asked if students would be on the exploration team.

  “Yes, some of you will go, everyone will eventually get a chance. But, only a few on the initial survey. Professor Breat and the XO will draw up the list. Chief Bowen will select a team to provide security,” the Captain answered. An excited rumble passed through the students as he moved on and patiently answered everyone’s question.

  “Sir, any sign of intelligent life?” Big Tom asked.

  “No, Petty Officer Evans. No sign yet, no radio waves, no cities. Nothing that looks industrial. Of course, that doesn’t rule it out, but nothing confirming it either.”

  “How about ….”

  Erik tuned out the rest of the questions, they’d find out the answers soon enough. Instead, he started going over in his mind the checks he’d need to make on the shuttle. He sat back and smiled. As primary coxswain, he knew he’d be going down with all the teams. This was why he put up with asshole passengers and long boring hours on watch. This was why he sacrificed the pleasures of the red light districts.

  The Captain wrapped up the meeting and dismissed everyone. They stayed huddled in small groups, their heads close to each other discussing the possibilities. It was going to be a long couple of days, he thought.

  .o0o.

  BOING,

  BOING,

  BOING, reverberated throughout the ship as the general quarter's alarm sounded, sending thirty-nine hearts racing into overdrive.

  “This is not a drill, this is not a drill, man your general quarter's billets,” quickly followed. Words designed to turn a man’s knees to jelly.

  Erik raced for his station, squeezing next to the bulkhead, as other crewmen raced to theirs. The Damage Control station, located at the front of the mess deck, was fully equipped with rescue and repair equipment.

  Anything a guy might need, from fixing vacuum leaks to dousing fires. Scrambling into his suit, he locked his helmet in place, glancing at the countdown clock on the HUD projection in the corner of the display. Over a minute and a half had elapsed, and he still didn’t have any idea what the problem was. There’d been no trace of that sickly smell of burning wire, or the high pitched wine of escaping air.

  Slamming the door shut, as the last of his team scooted through, he pushed the locking bar into place, sealing the room.

  “Bridge, Damage Control manned and ready. All accounted for,” he said.

  “DC, Roger, check on the students, we haven’t got comms,” Lt. Henderson said from the bridge.

  “Roger.”

  Stepping over to the mess deck hatch, he placed his helmet next to the viewing portal and looked in. The students looked like a barrel full of monkeys. Each of them hopping around on one foot. Only a few were fully dressed out and helmets locked down. He smiled to himself when he saw that Nora had successfully completed her dressing and was helping others.

  Seeing that the room was okay, he cracked the lock and stepped through. Removing his helmet, he said, “Professor, you need to get your helmet on and report your status to the bridge.”

  Professor Breat looked at him like he was talking another language. Like they hadn’t run through this drill a dozen times when they’d first gotten underway.

  The faraway look in his eyes and his failure to acknowledge him made Erik’s stomach turn over. Man, the guy’s forgotten everything and is dropping into shock faster than a pebble in a pond. He also knew that panic could spread like a plague. Making a decision, he turned and locked the DC door behind him, telling PO3 Landing to take over.

  He gently sat the Professor down and scanned the room. Yep, three teachers, six boy students, and six girl students.

  “Students all accounted for,” he said into his microphone, letting the bridge cross that worry off their list. He reached over and zipped one of them, then handed another his helmet.

  “What’s going on?” one of the students asked.

  Erik indicated the kid should put on his helmet and get buckled up. Then, turning to the crowd, he told everyone to lock down and plug in, at leas
t until they found out what the situation was, then watched as the numbers on his display changed from red to green.

  Erik’s gut dropped through the deck when a discombobulated voice with a weak wobble came over the intercom, “All students lay to the shuttle – immediately.”

  “Tanner, get those kids and the teachers onto the shuttle. Hold off on launching, but I want everything ready to go,” Captain Freeborn said into his earpiece.

  The man sounded as solid as a rock, Erik thought, but this wasn’t normal protocol.

  “Roger, Sir, we’re headed that way now, what’s going on?”

  There was a long pause. He didn’t know if that was because the Captain was considering what to say, or if the man was just busy.

  “Something is wrong with the core,” the Captain said to him on his private channel.

  Erik blanched, then turned away to try and hide it from the students. Keying his room mike he told them to start making their way to the shuttle. They all looked at him like he’d grown a second head and was now out of both of his minds. He instructed them again, then gently started herding them down the passageway to the hangar.

  Erik double checked the readouts and then slammed the shuttle’s locking handle in place.

  Glancing back at the passengers, their eyes were the size of small planets, and they had those drained, pale faces, each looked back at him. Questioning, begging him to fix things, to make it all go away.

  He climbed into the pilot seat and started running through his checks. It was all just in case, he kept telling himself.

  Focusing on slowing his racing heart, he worked to remember every step. Finishing, he sat back and folded his hands across his chest then closed his eyes. Now, it was a matter of waiting for the word.

  How bad could it be? A core was designed to get safer the more things went bad. You had to find that chaotic balance to get the thing to work. If you weren’t in balance, then it became a simple lump of inert forces. It was theoretically impossible for it to explode. But, one thing he was sure of, whenever the suits said something couldn’t happen, it always did.

  The passengers were beginning to get restless, whispering to each other, shuffling around in their seats. The waiting was always the worse.

  “Let’s go, what are you waiting for?” Combs said from the back. Something about that man made Erik’s shoulders bunch in frustration and his fists clench, but he didn’t acknowledge the comment.

  Combs’ comments seemed to have popped the balloon, and the compartment erupted into demands and comments.

  “This sucks.”

  “What’s going on? Come on let’s go.”

  “Why can’t you people ever do anything right?”

  Erik pulled his head down a little and tried to ignore them, especially that last one. A tinkle of metal and a grunt of effort told him that someone was getting out of their seat. Turning, he spotted Professor Combs stepping into the aisle.

  “Please sit down, Professor,” Erik said. His eyes narrowed, and he tried his best glare, but it bounced off the man like a useless insult. The man was dumber than a rock.

  “Professor, if I get the word to go, you won’t have time to get back to your seat, NOW SIT DOWN.”

  Combs froze in place and then looked around the room. The students were looking at him, waiting for his next move.

  Erik could tell the moment he made up his mind to ignore the pilot. He stomped up the aisle and only halted when he reached the pilot's seat. Standing there with his hands at his side, the man was sweating like a leaking water faucet.

  “Do something damn it, what are your waiting for? Get us the hell out of here.”

  “Intrepid One, launch immediately, I repeat go, go go...”

  Erik looked up at the Professor standing next to him, a shit eating grin broke out on the coxswain's face.

  “Told you,” he said, then pushed the throttle forward.

  The Professor’s face turned even whiter as he reached out to grab the seat next to him. Physics can be a bitch, and twenty-five-year-old professors are softer than normal.

  He missed the chair and began to slide back as the shuttle shot forward. Regretfully, Erik couldn’t watch the man slide all the way back. Hopefully, he’d hit every stanchion and seat leg along the way. Turning, he adjusted a little as they slipped through the opening and out into black space.

  “Intrepid One, take em’ out about ten klicks and hold.”

  Erik rogered the command and set the controls. Once the shuttle was in position, he spun it around so he could keep an eye on Intrepid.

  The ship looked perfectly normal. You’d think it’d be bent and mangled, or at least have blowing smoke. Anything to give it a sense of drama, to let them know just how bad things were. But, nothing.

  “Everybody stay strapped in,” he said, then smiled at Professor Combs who held a hand up to his nose to wipe away some blood. The look the Professor shot back to the front should have been enough to make most men think second thoughts, but Erik just laughed and shook his head. Idiots never learned.

  Erik continued to stare at the ship, his stomach constantly turning over. What were they up to? His guys were in their fighting for their life, and he was sitting out here babysitting. As he sat there, he started getting angry, why wouldn’t they tell him what was going on? Maybe he could help. What was the Captain thinking?

  As if reading his mind, the Captain came on the radio, “Tanner you there?” he asked, with a tired voice.

  “Yes, Sir, Intrepid One is ten kilometers to your port side, Sir.”

  “Good, good, I want you to move out to about a hundred. And, Tanner, don’t dawdle, you got me?”

  “Um, yes, Sir.”

  The ship slipped from the shuttle’s front screen, and the stars began to spin, as Erik adjusted the thrusters. His insides were turning to jelly, the Captain hadn’t sounded like his normal self. What the hell was going on? they …

  “Tanner, take care of the kids ...”

  The silence was the scariest sound Erik had ever heard. He changed the view on the screen so he could keep an eye on the ship, as he pulled the yoke back and started putting distance between the ship and his sorry ass.

  Erik couldn’t tear his eyes away. His insides knew what was coming. Every part of his body was yelling, but his mind couldn’t grasp the facts.

  The ship seemed to pulse, the sparkling metal skin stretched out a little, then shrunk back to normal. Erik couldn’t tell if it was a hallucination or not. Please, please, he prayed.

  A starship isn’t made to contain the explosion that happens when a core goes bad. Nothing could contain such a blast. The energy is almost enough to create a miniature black hole. Luckily for Erik and his passengers, it was almost, but not quite enough.

  The ship expanded again, like a pulse throbbing. Then, it seemed to disintegrate into a billion pieces. Each of them riding a shock wave of destruction. He slammed the throttle to full open.

  “Come on baby, you can do it,” he mumbled to himself.

  What used to be the Starship Intrepid continued to expand, ever onward. Erik hoped the Professor got seated in time, if not, then he was a pancake against the rear bulkhead.

  Adjusting a left rear thruster, he tried to keep the shuttle’s ass end, square to the explosion, trying to keep as low a profile as possible. He instinctively hunched his shoulders, waiting for the blast to reach them.

  His muscles tightened up, and he held his breath. The blast lifted their rear end up like an ocean wave and pushed them forward ever faster. His gauges went haywire, and every light on the board flashed from green to red. He could feel the automatic pilot fall off line and the ship skewed to the right like a drunken sailor on a peg leg.

  Grabbing the yoke, he tried to bring it back. The debris was passing the ship. He could see it through the side window.

  Miniature pieces of his world. The shuttle wouldn’t stay flat and even, she kept yawing to the right. Increasing speed, then dropping off. His left hand
turned dials and flipped switches, making adjustments while his right held the yoke with an iron like death grip, and willed his ship to hold on.

  “Come on honey,” he repeated.

  Finally, the ship started to respond. He could feel it through his spine. The vibration frequency started to feel okay, like they might not shake themselves into a thousand bits.

  Once he had it back under control, he started studying his readings. His face blanched and his eyes locked on his fuel readings. DAMN, they’d lost ninety percent, how…., they must have taken shrapnel from the explosion. Somehow both tanks had been hit. It hadn’t been his outstanding piloting skills that saved them, the damn tanks had emptied and stopped exhausting.

  “Hold on people, we’re okay, but we have to land right now.”

  The screaming from the back didn’t lesson, but he was able to tune it out. Pulling up the charts made only days before, he started looking for a place to put her down.

  A thousand worries flashed through his mind, but he couldn’t waste his time. He had minutes to get her down, twelve at the top. A shuttle without fuel was little more than a square shaped rock. A chunk of metal and heavy ceramic at the whim of gravity, - physics was a bitch.

  If he didn’t get her out of orbit and into the atmosphere, they would be stuck up here, circling as a monument to man’s ineptitude. No worse. A monument to his failure.

  Pushing at the yoke, he made his move.

  The loss of the computer control was going to make this harder than the brick wall around a Valdorian harem.

  Taking a deep breath, he looked at the blue, green planet below him. For a second, it reminded him of New Kansas, that ass pit of a hell, he used to call home. But, this one had too much blue, too much green. Most definitely not brown enough to be New Kansas.

  The noise from the passengers hadn’t completely disappeared, but it had quieted. They deserved to know what was going on. If he screwed this up, they were going to end up as a small smear at the bottom of a deep hole on a strange unknown planet.

  “Okay, listen up,” he said with as much authority as he could muster. Taking calming breaths, he tried to slow his racing heart. Reassure them, Erik thought, you need them quiet and out of the way.