by T I WADE
Three orbits later, the two shuttles were on the right orbit over the southern border of the United States. Allen Saunders slowed to increase distance, while Jonesy and VIN speeded up. Allen and Michael slowly positioned their shuttle one half of an orbit behind Jonesy and then gently released the ISS at the correct speed, 120 miles above Earth. That made sure that when Ivan headed over the U.S. horizon to the east, the ISS came over the western horizon.
This slightly higher orbit would decrease the orbital decay of the two space stations, and they should both still be in orbit in 20 years. They did have their own thrusters and fuel to maneuver, but the supplies were limited until somebody launched from Earth to refuel them. The new plutonium-238 would also outlast any orbits.
Twenty-four hours after the mother ship had headed out into the middle of nowhere, the two shuttles followed suit. With their new Pulsers, it took the shuttles only a few hours to equal America One’s forward speed, already 120,000 miles ahead of them.
After 48 hours of orbits, Jonesy, with Allen in formation a mile away on his starboard bow, soared away from Earth. At 34,000 miles an hour, it would still take three days to catch up, as the ship’s speed was also increasing. Jonesy and VIN were used to these long flights and explained to Allen and Michael how to cope. The shuttles’ cockpits were slightly larger than the living quarters of the Astermine craft, but not equipped for long distance travel. At least the two captain’s chairs lay flat so they could strap themselves down to sleep. They were at zero gravity.
Since the craft were traveling directly away from Earth and the moon, radio communication between the planet and America One was already at its limits at 300,000 miles. Ryan radioed the president to say final farewells.
“Yes, we are in full rotation. We have 85% of Earth gravity on the upper level and 40% gravity on our mid-level area. Yes, Mr. President, we are full of supplies. After General Jones’ visit to the island, I’m surprised that there is any food left on Earth. Yes, the shuttles were overloaded on launch. SB-II and SB-III crawled into space slower than any of their previous launches. We have learned not to overload them again.” Ryan’s conversation with the president had to overcome a great deal of static. Jonesy was listening to the conversation, ready to assist if America One couldn’t hear. America One’s communication radios were already patched through SB-III’s radio system to aid the conversation in both directions. Both shuttles were tuned in to the conversation.
“Well, friend Ryan, and crew, I wish you God speed. I hope you find what you are looking for, and I hope you or your children return in my lifetime. I understand that we have only a day or so of communications left. By the way, Ryan, the Chinese Government accepted the first load of cut and polished diamonds. Thanks to you and your crew our national debt has decreased by 13% so far. I believe they will accept the rest of the shipment, although they don’t really have a choice. It’s the diamonds or nothing. But I believe we will meet all our debts with China and Japan, and the government will hold back a small amount for two budget increases, which Capitol Hill is in the process of discussing. We know that China and North Korea are powering up. We need to complete the same missile defense system, ‘Iron Dome’, that the Israelis achieved in 2012.”
“Didn’t they get the basic systems from the U.S.?” Ryan asked.
“Yes, we still have only the basic system, but we need to purchase their upgrades. We have to cover an area a thousand times larger than Israel,” replied the president. “For about 500 billion dollars, we can protect most of our large cities and decrease the prospect of a missile strike by about 60%. Over the next several years by increasing the second phase of ‘Iron Dome’ in combination with the two orbiting space stations, we will be able to shoot down enemy missiles in space. One day we hope to be 100% secure.”
“So, sort of an ‘Iron Dome’ in space?” Ryan asked.
“Yes, we had a system in place before, but the last president ended it altogether and destroyed much of what had been developed over decades.”
“So, the U.S. has to start again?” Ryan asked.
“I’m afraid so. What the last administration didn’t destroy on land, Mortimer destroyed in space. But, Ryan, I feel that the glass is still half-full, and the country will have a modern protection system in place within five to ten years.”
“Won’t other countries be doing the same?”
“Of course,” the president replied. “The next world war will be above us, in space, where you are now, and we hope to retain domination of space until you return. I must give you one word of warning, though. You will need a secret code to penetrate any of our modern systems on your return. The code has already been set up in our defense computers down here; they will stay dormant until our defense system is established. On your return you will be asked for three words. Only you and I will know the code as all submissions of these codes have been erased. The three words are the three names of the first three children born to you and your crew. In case somebody is listening, they are to be named in the reverse order of birth.”
“Yes, I have that recorded exactly as you stated it. I will keep the code safe,” Ryan replied.
The conversation was as private and scrambled as the latest systems could devise, but nobody knew who could be listening in. There was less than a one percent chance anybody could listen in, and the frequencies were automatically changed every few seconds, so any other listening computers had to scramble to find the channel the two men were talking on.
After farewells to all the crew, the last conversation with Earth ended. The silence after the conversation was a pretty poignant for Ryan, who sat on the Bridge with Captain Pete in command. The two shuttles behind them were gradually creeping closer.
Ryan felt an odd sensation. Absolutely nothing had changed since leaving orbit. The only difference was that outside space was getting slightly darker as Earth receded; it was their primary source light. There was absolutely no feeling of movement, change of direction, or any thrust from the engines when they lit up on autopilot from the onboard computers.
It was time for a fresh cup of coffee and a piece of chocolate cake. Ryan went down to the cubes to chat with Suzi, Mars and Mr. Rose, and to let Suzi know when her husband was expected to join them.
Three days later and already 600,000 miles from Earth, the shuttles got to within 20,000 miles of America One. Communications with Earth were completely nonexistent. The three craft were totally alone.
The entire voyage to planet Mars would take six months. This gave the build crew time to finally complete the interior of the ship and prepare for a gradual increase in population. The storage units were filled to the brim, but would empty over time as the luxury items from Earth were consumed and not replaced. Over half the corridor system was designated for storage, and the freight capsules connected onto the outside walls were also full of supplies. He gave permission for the crew to finally fill the pool. There was enough gravity at 80% of Earth’s to keep the water inside the pool, as it rotated upside-down on the upper level, around the middle of the craft. The thrusters working the rotation were spot on, needing little manual guidance; the computers kept them in tune.
Ryan, Captain Pete, Igor, Boris, and Vitaliy spent a couple hours each day monitoring energy usage from the outside reactor. Since most of the lighting consisted of the most modern LED system, the system required little energy. The heating stayed on constantly in the main areas, but was lowered when apartments had sleeping occupants. Nearly 55% of the daily usage was dedicated to keeping the interior of the ship warm. The six docked craft and freighters were also kept at 45 degrees Fahrenheit, the minimum temperature to keep them from freezing, unless they contained frozen supplies, like fuel tanks. The outer craft used up another 20% and the cubes the balance. Many of the systems, such as the cafeteria kitchen which used infra-red cooking units, were highly efficient and used minimum energy.
All corridors were walked every hour by two security guards. They often visited the lone
member of the crew in the infirmary, Fritz Warner, who caught a ride back on the second to last shuttle out of Dodge. He was in a bad way, needing prosthetics for both a leg and an arm. The team of prosthetic specialists that had worked on Suzi and VIN’s new limbs were working on Fritz’s new limbs, and anticipated that Fritz would be mobile again by the time they reached Mars.
The poor man had gone through hell. In addition to his physical injuries, his new bride had been murdered. She had told him to expect it, but nobody could have foreseen the attack. This insult on diplomatic immunity had really angered the U.S. All diplomatic ties to China were ended and the Embassy was closed. The United Nations imposed sanctions on the world’s second most powerful country. Canada, Europe and Japan banned all imports from that country and in the course of a few weeks, China lost 75% of its export business. Repayment of the debt owed to China by the United States would compensate for only a fraction of the loss resulting from the ban of imports by the other large countries.
The arrogant Beijing government began to bully smaller countries to force them to increase imports. Warnings were fired off in both directions. The insults and threats diminished once the U.S., with the permission of Japan and South Korea, openly moved dozens of nuclear weapons into those two countries. Neither of the two countries liked China.
A month before Ryan reached Mars, the U.S. debt to the Chinese was completely paid off.
NASA, the U.S. Air Force, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Planetary Resources, and dozens of other companies kicked into high gear, producing defense and new space systems to repel the promised attack from China. In low space orbit, the two laser-equipped space stations went about their silent business of defending the free world.
The crew aboard America One knew nothing of what was going on behind them. They were out of range and most had little interest in contemporary world affairs. The crew established daily routines which quickly became habit. The astronauts spent hours in the flight simulators to keep their flying skills up to par. After a month in America One, VIN and Jonesy became bored. Jonesy, in particular, was accustomed to an edgier life with serious challenges and moments of breathtaking excitement. The convention of living every day exactly as the day before was frustrating: eat, workout, simulator, three hours of security detail, eat, swim and sunbathe, simulator, and finally, sleep.
VIN worked hard with Suzi, his fingers becoming greener as time passed. Seven couples were adapting to family life with their new babies and two more women were pregnant. The crew would soon grow to more than sixty.
One thousand pounds of disposable diapers had been supplied by one of the shuttles; however, Nurse Martha realized that after ten children, they would have to turn to cloth reusable diapers. Diapers were the biggest new problem aboard ship!
Garbage was another weekly chore for many aboard. Everything possible was recycled, but a few objects, including diapers, could not be. One of the Russian freight capsules, frozen outside of the ship’s hull, was used as a garbage can. Once a week, a spacewalker took out the garbage and deposited it into the freighter. When the freighter was full, it was to be fired up and directed towards the sun where the garbage would be incinerated.
The exercise room, cafeteria, and pool room became the centers of meeting, relaxation, and gossip. Like in all human establishments, certain aspects of civilization could not be forgotten.
The exercise room, half a cylinder, could hold a dozen people at any one time. The small electric sauna was on for 16 hours out of every 24 and at least half of the crew used it daily. The pool area had half a dozen sun loungers, made by the build crew out of the older, softer Nano-Silicone, and the pool could hold three or four adults at a time. The two sun lamps, donated by Jonesy and Maggie, could only tan two people at a time. The lamps couldn’t really provide a good tan because too many people signed up to use them each hour, but the vitamin D supplied by the lamp was more important than the color of the skin.
Schedules and lists of users for everything were placed on walls everywhere.
It was decided that families could have the privacy of the pool room for one hour a day. Singles could mingle, up to ten people per hour, and rosters were filled with names. Ryan, Kathy and Lunar used their hour every day. It became a real relaxation center and the crew often thanked Suzi and Maggie for their forward thinking.
Every member of the crew had chores. Some were on cooking detail, while others, mostly male, did security. Life on the ship wasn’t any different than a naval vessel at sea or an average home, except that every chore was communal. Each member needed to work six hours out of every twenty-four, and Kathy, Nurse Martha and Martha Von Zimmer were in charge of daily duty rosters. Even Ryan had to participate just like anyone else. The only thing Ryan did not do was cooking detail; he was a lousy cook, and exchanged his hours in the kitchen with extra hours on the bridge.
There were weekly meetings of crew details either in the cafeteria or, for the astronauts and defense teams, on the bridge.
Two months into the journey a large mass appeared on the Bridge’s furthest radar searches, 199,000 miles behind the ship. The blip on the radar was about three times the size of America One, on a direct course, and very slowly catching up to them.
Chapter 17
What the hell is that?
“Guys, we are being chased by something. We believe that an asteroid, not an enemy space ship, is on a path close enough to ours that it could prove a danger,” Ryan began at a meeting the next morning.
“Do we have any actual enemies up here?” VIN asked.
“Precisely, Mr. Noble,” responded Ryan. As usual, fresh coffee was being served to the three shuttle commanders, Captain Pete, Igor, Boris, and VIN, who was in charge of security, by one of the cafeteria crew on duty.
“It’s still 196,000 miles behind us, travelling approximately 500 miles an hour faster than we are and in the same general direction. I put my money on an asteroid.
“Oh, no!” returned VIN. “Not more diamonds!”
“Hopefully not,” smiled Ryan. “We have all the diamonds we need, but what I‘m hoping is that there could be gases or metals we could use. We have enough rhodium aboard, but we do need other rare-earth metals like ruthenium, osmium; even nickel and cobalt could be worth mining, plus any gases that we can tank. This could be a good practice run for future Mars mining.”
“Why don’t we fly over to it and check it out before it catches up?” Allen Saunders asked.
“I already need a break from this ship, and I‘ve always wanted to walk on one of these asteroids like VIN and Jonesy did,” added Michael Pitt. “You guys have all the fun.”
“Wait until you smell your sweaty, unwashed crew member in the enclosed Astermine spacecraft,” laughed Jonesy, his usual direct self. “My partner VIN could certainly stink up the place on his diet of caviar and vodka.”
“Likewise, General Jones, with your dependence on beer and jerky. You think you smelled any better than I did?” VIN defended himself, smiling at the memory of what they had gone through aboard the mining craft.
“At least I smelled American, with the beer and jerky, not like some old fishing boat from the Black Sea,” Jonesy returned the serve.
“Thank you, gentlemen, and General Astronaut Jones, I’m a little partial to caviar, squid, and the fineries of life myself, as are many of us here. I’m not a country boy from Texas like you!” Ryan joked, winking at the others. “To get back to our next mission, before I put only regulation food pouches in the Astermine craft, I’m hoping that Captain Pete is right; that we have an asteroid bearing down on us. Its angle is less than a tenth of a degree off our course and will bypass us in about three weeks. On its current course, it will have passed within 130,000 miles of Earth, but with their loss of space-monitoring systems, they didn’t even see it go by. Maybe the asteroid-search telescopes did, but at that distance nobody really cared.”
“Are the mining craft ready to launch?” Ryan asked Captain Pete.
“
Apart from fresh provisions and, as Mr. Jonesy eloquently stated, added luxuries, they can undock within twelve hours; it will take that much time to bring the ships up to maximum power. The computers are permanently locked in together and all our coordinates on this tail are already aboard.”
The only MMA, or Magnetic Metal Analyzer, is aboard Astermine One, and we already put in several more shovels and buckets from our stores,” added VIN, now Head of Mining Expeditions.
“Do you want to take Asterspace Three?” Jonesy asked Ryan.
“Maybe Suzi might want to check up on asteroid biological possibilities, and the family can come,” added VIN.
“You think there might be habitation on the asteroid? Or are you scared that the almighty space shark might be following us?” Jonesy joked, not understanding that side of science.
“Please, Mr. Jones, at least we know that Mr. Noble’s marriage to Suzi has given him a broader perspective of the basic sciences. Mr. Noble is actually right. Mr. Noble, please invite your lovely wife up here.”
Ten minutes later Suzi arrived in her wheelchair. The magnets always on under the bridge’s floor wouldn’t allow her to float as she usually did in the cubes. She always used a wheelchair to go from their apartment to the middle of the ship.
“Suzi, would you like to go and check out an asteroid a few hundred thousand miles behind us and catching up?” Ryan asked, handing her a cup of coffee.
“Of course,” Suzi replied. “Both Martha Von Zimmer and I must go. Dr. Bloem cannot leave and she can carry on the biology department. That is why Martha and I have been getting experience in the spacesuits; to one day go where no man has gone, only woman!” she joked.
