Star One: Neutron Star

by Raymond L. Weil

  Ty was finding it hard to believe the ship had been changed without his knowledge. He couldn’t imagine what Steve and Mase could have changed to make the ship better. He had studied the original design. It was a damn good design that NASA had come up with. Hell, he had worked on the ship for months during the early construction stages.

  “We sank another four billion dollars of Star One’s money into the ship,” answered Steve, recalling the difficult decision that was made to spend so much money.

  “Four billion!” gasped Ty, drawing in a sharp breath and wondering just what they had done. What could cost four billion dollars?

  “If Senator Farley had managed to find out what we were proposing, we felt that he would have tried to kill the project and possibly would have even succeeded,” replied Steve, recalling all the secrecy that had been necessary to keep the changes quiet. “Even though it was our money from the sale of the metal alloy Luxen and the newer pharmaceuticals we have been exporting, Farley would have still come after us! He still may.”

  It had bothered Steve, keeping this secret from Ty. It was a miracle that Ty hadn’t found out with all the contacts he had on the station and the Space Platform. In addition, Ty had been used to communicate with NASA engineers on the ground about specific design problems during the early construction. By keeping Ty in the dark, it had kept the NASA engineers from suspecting anything was amiss. The NASA engineers had routinely grilled Ty about the ship whenever he was down at the cape.

  “What changes did you make?” Ty asked again, feeling let down that he hadn’t been made aware of any of this. “I’ve studied the original design that was recommended by NASA. From my meetings with the NASA engineers, I thought the design was pretty much kept as proposed.”

  “It was a good design,” Steve admitted.

  “The ship was nearly complete the last time I checked on her,” Ty commented confused. “All she needed was the fission reactor installed.”

  Steve paused before answering. Some of the things they had done were revolutionary if they worked, and his technicians said they would. It would make space travel within the Solar System a matter of weeks instead of months to some of the inner planets and the asteroid belt.

  “It was your own report which gave us some of the ideas we used, Ty,” responded Steve, recalling the long conversations with Mase Colton over changing the ship’s design. “Your report said the ship was as advanced as anything Earth technology could currently produce under the government restrictions and the budget we had to work with.”

  “It was,” replied Ty, nodding and thinking about the original design. “There wasn’t much more we could do with our current technology and the restrictions placed upon us by Senator Farley’s oversight committee.”

  “We tossed out the budget and went around some of the restrictions,” confessed Steve, gazing at Ty. Most of the restrictions had come from Senator Farley’s group of patsies anyway. “We put a fusion power plant in her instead of a fission one. The extra power and temperatures we can create in her drive chambers will allow us to triple her original acceleration and range.” Steve paused, watching the dawning look of comprehension and incredulity appear on Ty’s face.

  “A fusion reactor!” Ty blurted out stunned, wondering how Steve had managed to pull that off. “How the hell did you manage that?”

  “Dryson and Stoler designed it,” replied Steve, remembering how enthusiastic the two scientists had been when asked if they would design the reactor.

  “We lined her tubes with two inches of Luxen to withstand the higher heat and pressure,” continued Steve, watching Ty to see how he was taking all of this. “The entire outside of the ship is coated with three-eighths of an inch of Luxen for protection against micro meteors and radiation. We are also adding four SRBs to the ship to give her a tremendous boost in acceleration when she’s launched. These are special SRBs with a new, slow burning fuel mixture that has twice the power of a normal SRB. The inside of the SRBs are also lined with two inches of Luxen. This will handle the increased pressure and temperatures. Each SRB will burn through one-fourth of its fuel, and then shut down. This will allow for four separate firings of each unit, something never tried before. Only the new fuel combined with the alloy Luxen will allow this.”

  “Even so,” interrupted Ty, calculating furiously in his head. “It will still take months for us to reach our destination and return.” A sudden worried look of understanding crossed his face. “Or is this a one way mission?” If this neutron star is as big a threat as it sounds, it could warrant that type of thinking, Ty realized with a growing lump in his throat. Could Steve be sending him to his death?

  “No, Ty; it’s not going to be one way,” responded Steve reassuringly, knowing from Ty’s words that he was willing to accept command of the mission. “Doctor Wruggi has perfected a series of shots that will significantly slow down metabolism and allow your crew and you to sleep through most of the trip. He has been working on this for years and has had considerable success with animals. He has already put humans under for periods of up to one month with no ill effects. Lieutenant Strett, who is the medical and environmental officer on the Jupiter Probe, is well aware of his work. Doctor Wruggi has all the confidence in the world that it will work just as well for the longer period we are dealing with here. Special deep sleep chambers have already been installed aboard the ship. All we are waiting for now is final approval from Earth.”

  “Doctor Wruggi,” Ty said thoughtfully. He knew the esteemed doctor very well.

  Doctor Wruggi was one of the foremost research scientists in the field of medicine on the station. If he was confident that this new drug would work, Ty was satisfied. He still had a lot of questions he wanted to ask about this mission.

  “Yes, Doctor Wruggi,” Steve replied. “He has assured me the drug will work fine with no aftereffects.”

  “You made all these changes without the Earth people ever catching on!” Ty spoke, amazed that the secret hadn’t leaked out. He could just imagine Senator Farley’s reaction if he had found out what was going on.

  “Yes, we did,” answered Steve with a slight nod of his head. “We did everything we could to keep the changes a secret.”

  Ty knew many of the people working on the ship and no one had breathed a word. “If Senator Farley had gotten word that you constructed another fusion reactor he would have hung you out to dry. Not even Tim McPhryson or the president would have been able to protect you from Farley’s wrath,” Ty said, shaking his head. “You took a very big risk, Steve.”

  “Most of the changes were made toward the end of construction. This was done to reduce the chance of the secret getting out,” explained Steve, relaxing some now that Ty knew everything. “The different projects were worked on separately, and the components secretly built. All we had to do at the end was to install them. We felt once we had a completed ship that fact itself would get us by.

  “This is all incredible,” Ty said, trying to comprehend everything that Steve was telling him.

  He still couldn’t believe all he was hearing. His anger had faded, and he was becoming intensely curious about the ship and this mission. He wanted to go over to the Jupiter Probe and see everything with his own eyes.

  “You will join the rest of the crew tomorrow and begin training on the ship,” continued Steve, knowing from the look in Ty’s eyes that he was no longer angry. “The crew will consist of you as Mission Commander, a pilot, two mission technicians, a medical environmental technician, and three scientists who will collect the data we need.”

  “Do they know all of this, I mean about the neutron star?” asked Ty, wondering how the crew had taken this information.

  “Several of the scientists do, but not the flight crew,” replied Steve, shaking his head. “The flight crew has been training on simulators for the Jupiter mission for the past four months. Most of the crew, except for the scientists, have been involved to some extent with the ship’s construction, especially the change
s we made. You were scheduled to join them shortly anyway,” Steve paused briefly before dropping the bombshell. “This is the unfortunate part. You must be prepared to leave orbit no later than seven days from today.”

  “What!” interrupted Ty, standing up and almost knocking his chair over. He stared at Steve in shock, his mind going numb. “We can’t possibly be ready that quick. The entire crew needs to train together longer than that on the ship itself. The ship is so new it could have numerous problems with its systems. It’s bound to have some! We can’t possibly be ready that quick!”

  “I know, Ty,” Steve sighed, and then continued. “But if this turns out to be anything like we think it may, every day is vital! We don’t have the luxury of waiting. We have to go at the earliest possible moment.”

  “Seven days,” repeated Ty, sitting back down and wondering if it were even possible.

  “Every minute of delay could have catastrophic results for us, Tycho City, the other near Earth stations, and even Earth itself,” continued Steve, sensing a sour taste in his mouth and knowing that he wasn’t giving Ty enough time by a long shot. “If we come across something major we can delay, but the mission needs to be launched.”

  “You’re asking a lot, Steve,” Ty said, gazing meaningfully at the commander. “It will be very difficult to do what you’re asking.”

  “The ship’s systems have been tested extensively,” replied Steve, knowing that Ty was right, but he also knew they had no other choice. “The crew is well trained, and they know their jobs. We can do it. We have to do it!”

  “What are the odds of us making it back?” Ty asked quietly, glancing at the screen and the Jupiter Probe once more. He knew the odds probably were not very good.

  “Our best guess is fifty-fifty,” answered Steve, wishing the odds were better. “The ship is sound but, as you said, we haven’t had time to shake out all the bugs in her systems. We are still finding minor problems almost daily.”

  “That’s to be expected in a new ship,” replied Ty, wondering just how sound the ship was.

  Steve was asking him to go on a dangerous mission on a ship that still needed months of intensive testing. Not only that, but the odds of making it back were not that great. He also knew that he couldn’t turn Steve down; this mission was just too important. Ty glanced down at the papers and photos scattered about the table. This damn neutron star might be the death of him.

  “Everything looks good, but you know as well as I do how brand new systems like this can have hidden glitches,” Steve said, knowing what his best friend was thinking.

  “One week,” Ty said slowly, still wondering if it could be done. This timeline was asking for trouble.

  “We have increased the testing schedule, and the techs believe they can complete all the final system checks in the next few days,” responded Steve, nodding his head. “I know a week is not a lot of time, but it’s all we have. If we can, I want to give you a few days to familiarize yourself with the ship and then let you take it on a short trip to the Moon and back for a shakedown flight. That should allow us to catch and correct any remaining problems before you have to leave for the neutron star.”

  Ty was quiet for a moment, as he gazed down at the pages of the report scattered on the table in front of him. Everything was happening so quickly. “Just how dangerous is this neutron star going to be to Earth?” Ty asked, almost afraid to hear Steve’s answer. That information hadn’t been in the report.

  Steve hesitated for a moment. He had talked to Pierre LaRann the Farside astronomer earlier about this. “The Earth will definitely be affected. If the neutron star stays on its present course, there will be a major shift in Earth’s orbit. A large part of the population of the planet may very well perish.”

  “Will there be many survivors?” Ty asked in a quiet voice. He still had friends and family down on Earth. Everyone on the station did. What was going to happen to them?

  “We think there will be some,” replied Steve, recalling the simulations they had run on the effect of the neutron star on Earth. “Some areas of the Earth should come through relatively intact. There will undoubtedly be underground shelters that will also survive. They will have time to prepare for the star’s approach.”

  “What about Star One and Tycho City?” Ty asked. Most of his close friends were on Star One.

  “We think both will come safely through it, but life on Earth will be drastically changed,” Steve spoke in a subdued voice, wondering what the future held. “It will never be the same again. We need the information from your mission to help ensure that there are as many survivors as possible. We have to know exactly what we are facing!”

  Both men became silent, gazing at the ship on the screen lost in their own private world of thoughts. Both knew that nothing like this had ever been attempted before. If anything happened to the Jupiter Probe on its voyage to the neutron star and back, there would be no rescue. There would be no coming back!

  Chapter Three

  Jennifer had just finished a long relaxing hot shower. It was unbelievable how just a few minutes in the shower had refreshed her, making her feel as if she were ready for anything. She had curiously opened and checked out all the storage compartments in the small apartment, marveling at how every inch of space was utilized. She had unpacked her bags, which had been delivered a few minutes before and slipped into a comfortable pair of slacks and a blouse. She sat down and began putting on her makeup in front of the large mirror in the bedroom.

  Looking at her reflection, she saw a young, determined women intent on her career goals. Standing up, she posed sideways, looking at her slim figure in the mirror. Her stomach was flat, her hips curved slightly, and her breasts nicely filled out her blouse.

  “Why do women spend so much time in front of mirrors?” Teela’s soft voice asked inquisitively, watching Jennifer with renewed interest. “I have noticed that women seem to spend more time getting dressed and standing or sitting in front of mirrors than men do.”

  “It’s hard to explain, Teela,” replied Jennifer, suppressing a smile. She had forgotten the AI could see and hear nearly everything that was going on in her quarters.

  Teela was full of questions. It was obvious that the AI was extremely interested in the human crew of the station. Each time Teela spoke, Jennifer became more amazed and more excited at the limitless possibilities she was beginning to sense this marvelous AI possessed.

  “Women normally take extra steps to make themselves more presentable,” explained Jennifer, putting the final touches to her hair. “We wear different kinds of makeup to make ourselves more attractive, and a woman’s hair is normally longer than a man’s.”

  “I don’t understand,” responded Teela, feeling perplexed. People were so confusing to her at times. “Shouldn’t a man want to look good also?”

  “It’s difficult to explain, Teela,” replied Jennifer, coming to realize just how difficult it was going to be to answer some of Teela’s questions.

  Going back into the main room, Jennifer sat down in one of the comfortable chairs and flipped on the viewscreen experimentally with the remote control. Teela was silent, evidently still thinking about the differences between men and women.

  Jennifer spent several minutes scanning various stations, amazed at the variety of programming that was available. She found one station produced on Star One and was for the station’s occupants. Jennifer listened for several minutes, intrigued at the information being provided. The station covered current events going on aboard the massive space station, with interviews from some of the leading scientists and technicians about their current research projects. It was presently showing a view of the Jupiter Probe with a commentary on the upcoming Jupiter mission.

  “I can show you a lot more details about the station, about any part of the station, or anyone on the station,” Teela’s girlish voice broke in, wanting to impress Jennifer.

  Teela had a lot of questions that were just waiting for the right moment. Her gro
wing curiosity had been driving her actions for days now, as she realized there was so much more to learn about humans and their complex social interactions. Teela’s core programs shifted rapidly as she thought about how best to impress Jennifer. While she still had other duties aboard the station, she had shunted those to other secondary programs she commanded that could fill in for her with no one being the wiser. Right now, she wanted to concentrate on Jennifer.

  Cocking her head slightly, Jennifer brushed her hair back with her left hand and turned off the viewscreen. She would have plenty of time later to explore the station’s entertainment options. Closing her eyes and drawing in a deep breath, she realized that Teela was going to take a little getting used to. She clearly needed to be taught some etiquette.

  “Why don’t you tell me about yourself first? What do you do on the station, and what are your job responsibilities?” asked Jennifer wanting to get Teela to talk some more.

  Jennifer wanted to understand more about how the AI had been programmed, also more about how Teela viewed herself. Letting Teela talk should give her some valuable insight into Teela’s programmers. It might also give her some ideas on what the first steps should be in helping further Teela’s development.

  Without a moments hesitation, Teela launched excitedly into her brief life story. She always enjoyed talking to people when she was given the opportunity. Other than Andre, she found it difficult to open up to other station personnel. Teela hoped eagerly that Jennifer could be her friend.

  Teela didn’t have any real friends except perhaps Andre. Who wanted to be friends with a series of advanced molecular circuits and computer chips? Sometimes Teela felt so lonely. She knew there were no other AIs like her, and occasionally that thought frightened her immensely. She was completely alone!

  Relaxing, Jennifer leaned back in her chair paying close attention to Teela, trying to find the deeper reasons behind what this fabulous AI had become. Jennifer felt like all of her life’s ambitions had suddenly come to fruition with Teela. Never in her deepest dreams had she ever imagined that an AI like Teela could exist. Teela was generations ahead of any of the AIs down on Earth, which made her all the more remarkable.