ISO- Beyond the solar system

by Travis Sande

  Hank and Luke had already removed their helmets and were sitting at one of the three tables. Hank's familiar shaved head and Luke's blonde hair brought a sense of familiarity to the room. The coldness of the suits and helmets were an aesthetic Derrick was glad to shed.

  The table they were sitting at was made of stainless steel and secured to the floor. Chairs were fixed via a track that allowed for minor adjustments in their position. The seats had been covered in Kevlar enclosed foam for comfort. Sterility appeared to be the desired motif for the vessel. White floors and walls, stainless steel everything else. Luckily, the steel was brushed to a matte finish which prevented glare or reflections.

  Lighting was in the ceiling and behind several lined sections of the walls. Panel diffusers would create a uniform glow that illuminated the room in a dull white. The lighting system was equipped with several RGB settings that could alter the colour based on critical alerts. In addition to alerts, the customization would allow for several modes to represent varying times of day. Luke mentioned on several occasions that he had the ability to program any colour outside of the emergency spectrum. All opaque reds, yellows, and oranges were isolated to emergency functionality.

  The galley had a wall dedicated to rations and storage. A single computerized mechanism with a serving shelf would distribute all the daily nutrient gel. Stainless steel cabinets surrounding the serving shelf would hold all the utensils and serving apparatus needed. Each cabinet had the name of a crew member. Akin to a locker, all items within would be the responsibility of the respective crew member.

  Curiosity overtook Derrick as he made way to his cabinet. ‘Derrick Rich’ was printed across the upper middle of the door. There was a small sensor in the bottom right corner used for unlocking it. Waving his CCD unit over the sensor lifted the lock and allowed him access within. Magnets held the door in place after the lock was deactivated and a simple pull on the handle allowed him entry.

  Inside he found a bowl, plate, fork, knife, spoon, and mug. Each was made from a heat resistant polymer and held in place with a fitted insert that prevented any unwanted movement. On the inside of the cabinet door was a reminder that read, ‘Please rinse and return all items before leaving the kitchen area. Cabinet will be sanitized three times a day, avoid using contents between: 09:00-09:15, 13:00-13:15, 22:00-22:15. Manual sanitizing procedure must be implemented for any meal plan deviation.’ The cabinets would use heat and an anti-microbial steam to sanitize the items after each meal. Closing the cabinet, Derrick could hear the click as the CCD lock reengaged.

  Wanting to see his quarters, he started towards the starboard crew corridor. "I am going to go check out my quarters, enjoy your meal, boys." Derrick looked back, particularly at Hank.

  "We are just talking." Hank said, feigning insult at the implication that he would be eating already.

  "Yeah, you were talking about trying the nutrient gel." Luke said, exposing Hank's true intentions.

  "Shhh." Hank smiled and stood to explore the dispensers.

  Derrick smiled and continued into the starboard crew corridor. Once inside he could see access to five rooms. Each door had a last name printed in large font. He saw, La'Sendra, Amrose, Lyssak, Rich, and at the end, Haggenfjord rounding out the starboard crew section.

  This left Por, Lorn, Folte, Lye, and of course Eilik on the port side. With two entry hatches on either side and one at the end, each corridor was identical. Derrick found his as the second on the left, beside Nicole La'Sendra and across from Ben Lyssak. He made his way down the stretch to his room and unlocked it in a similar fashion to the kitchen cabinets. This time the click of the lock disengaging was immediately followed by the door sliding open. He stepped inside and looked around the room.

  Each room was equipped with a bunk, desk, multimedia interface, small closet, washroom, and any personal touches that were requested. His eyes were immediately drawn to the bunk as he saw his special request linens tucked tightly in place. A smile crept onto his face as he scanned the room. A wall mounted lamp that was a graduation gift from his late grandmother was secured to the wall between his desk and bunk. The desk itself was patterned to resemble oak just as Derrick had wanted. His quarters felt very welcoming to him and he appreciated the amount of effort that was put in on his behalf.

  Walking over to his desk, Derrick sat down with a thud. Still in his flight suit and helmet he took a second to close his eyes and take a deep breath. He reached up and began sliding the helmet's locking mechanism loose. The helmet was equipped with two clamps at both shoulders and a sliding lock that twisted around the neck. After twisting the main clamp loose, he could feel the pressure change as air started to escape his helmet. Lifting the two clamps freed him from it and he set it down on the desk.

  He took another deep breath and smelled the air in his room. To his surprise it didn't smell like anything. He had expected a 'new' smell somehow. The fresh smell of a desk or how new bedding smells when you first open it. He didn't know exactly what he wanted but he was thrown off by the utter lack of smell in such a confined space.

  ‘Maybe RIP travel obliterates human sensory perception.’ He thought to himself as he continued trying to detect a scent of any kind. ‘I guess the ventilation system onboard is quite sophisticated, maybe it's more efficient than I thought.’ He decided to investigate this theory by putting his nose down against his desk for a closer inspection. Before he made close enough, the suit contacted the front edge of the desk. With a bang he had added his first personal touch to the room, a small dent and a nice new scratch in the top of the oak desk. He took his glove off and ran his fingers over the new design choice. He was surprised they had used real wood for the desk and had just assumed it would be a more durable material patterned to look that way. Either way he deemed it not worthy of frustration and with a more precise second attempt he was able to get a closer smell of the desk. "There it is" he said to himself as the subtle varnish smell of an unused desk permeated his senses.

  With the helmet off he decided to finish changing into a more casual look. Derrick stood and moved to the closet. Sensors on the closet detected his approach, opening and sliding out of sight into the surrounding walls. Inside the closet he found a section specifically for the suit. Removing it, he arranged it carefully inside. He closed the suit storage compartment and turned his attention to the clothing.

  There were a wide variety of options in a relatively small space. Several shirts of varied purposes hung above five drawers. The drawers were filled with underwear, socks, pants, and one dedicated to footwear. He grabbed a pair of the recreational pants and an ISO branded T-shirt. Derrick changed out of his under-suit and put it in the laundry receptacle.

  Laundry receptacles were attached to the wall facing the corridor. Each corridor had a laundry rotation in which a crew member would take on the responsibility each week. The receptacle would have an access point in the corridor that allowed for privacy to be respected. A simple cart with five sections, one for each member, was used to facilitate this operation.

  The original design of the ship had a system that would move all laundry to the aft of the ship through an automated process. The automated laundry system was removed to accommodate the new Vryl ventilation system. As a result, the collection of all crew laundry was relegated to a manual process. A relatively small inconvenience.

  Derrick threw on the pants and shirt. Both were comprised of a grey fabric that was tight to the skin yet comfortable. Both the shirt and pants had ISO branding and sported a blue stripe up the sides. Once he was dressed, Derrick grabbed a pair of running shoes and headed to the exit of his room.

  As he returned to the corridor, Derrick could hear voices coming from the galley. Hank and Luke echoed throughout the ship as they appeared instantly comfortable in their new surroundings. Derrick moved through the empty hall and toward the commotion.

  Emerging into the galley, Derrick noticed Hank and Luke still in their flight-suits. They clearly hadn't taken the tim
e to visit their quarters. Nik, Ben, and Yanna accompanied them. The rest appeared to be absent and he assumed they were in their quarters.

  "There's our hotshot!" Luke announced Derrick's entrance as he broke the threshold into the galley.

  "Is that Derrick Rich, in the flesh?!" Sarcasm dripped from Hank's words.

  "My hero!" Nik clutched her hands together beside her face.

  "Oh Jesus, they got you in on it too?" Derrick said, surprised Nicole would participate.

  "Get over here, kid. Have a seat!" Hank invited him to sit across from him at the center table.

  Derrick accepted the invite and took a seat at the table. Luke and Hank had the center table to themselves and the other three sat around the starboard-side table. Derrick noticed Ben had changed into a very similar outfit to his own. The only difference was his decision to use slippers instead of runners. Beside Ben was Yanna who had hardly said a word all morning. Her silence was noticeably out of character. On the far side of the table, across from Yanna, was Nik. It struck him as odd that they had a ten-person crew, but the dining area was equipped for twelve. Three tables, each seating four.

  "Luke told us you came in at a 0.046 deviation at launch." Ben continued, "So there's one thing we wanted to ask you. Are you a robot? Luke says you should have an honesty chip installed so you have to tell us."

  "Not to nitpick but 0.0456, four ten-thousandths are an eternity to a robo... skilled human." The opportunity to lose himself in the moment was welcomed by Derrick and he played along.

  The room enjoyed a laugh together as they all settled in. The atmosphere was light despite the seriousness of their new journey. Like he was late for a weekend brunch at a diner, Derrick felt a warmth from the members of the crew. Hank had obviously felt the same way as he appeared to be indulging in a snack. Trading in fruit salad and crepes for blue nutrient gel.

  "Was that your best execution to date?" Yanna broke her long silence.

  "Yeah, it was strange, I just felt like I was in the zone the whole time." Derrick alluded to the experience he had while piloting the ship.

  "Good timing, we have peak Derrick for the trip. Can't say I am as confident about some other members" Luke gestured at Hank with his head.

  "Just wait until I finish this gel, I'll build a house in the zone." Hank responded after Luke's overt gesturing.

  "I don't know about building a house. Maybe a time-share that's always booked when you need it." Luke fired back.

  "Why am I not surprised that you know the ins and outs of time-shares." Scoffing at Luke's response, Hank joked with him.

  "What is a time-share?" Nik asked

  "It was a practice from roughly two hundred years ago on earth. It had the reputation of being a fiscally irresponsible opportunity. Several people would enter into a contract to divide time at a dwelling. None of the contract holders would own the property and would be limited to specific dates of use. The time-share income would pay for the cost of upkeep and supplement the income of the actual owner of the property." Everyone stopped to give Yanna a look of surprise after her explanation.

  "Are you a historian, Yanna?" Derrick inquired.

  "I had a class with a professor that wrote his thesis on monetary exploits of the twenty-first and twenty-second centuries. Time-shares had a dedicated section." It was nice to hear Yanna participate. The silence throughout the launch had concerned Derrick.

  "You took the time to seek out and read your professor's thesis?" Luke had his attention pulled from Hank.

  "It wasn't hard to find I just asked him for it." Yanna shrugged.

  "Oh, so you were just stroking his ego." Luke accused

  "I purely had an interest in the content of his work, there was no motive outside that if that's what you're implying." Yanna seemed slightly offended by the insinuation.

  "At least he said ego." Hank had a flare for pushing things just a little too far.

  There was a brief pause where Derrick could feel a bit of tension but that instantly gave way as Ben commented. "Some people actually like to read and learn new things, Luke."

  "That's a myth." Everyone had a chuckle as the room relaxed once again. Luke shook his head at Hank, playfully acknowledging the awkwardness he had created.

  "Well we better get changed, these things don't exactly breathe." Hank said, referring to his flight-suit as he stood from the table.

  "Save my seat." Luke added.

  With that, Luke and Hank both headed in separate directions toward their rooms. Derrick's eyes moved to the door providing access to the upper floors. He was curious what entertainment would be provided. "Have you two looked at your labs yet?" He wanted company to the upper decks.

  "Not yet, my work is scheduled to begin tomorrow." Yanna replied

  "My schedule is similar, but it couldn't hurt to go up now since we have a couple hours until orientation." Ben also seemed to be curious.

  "I guess that's true, lead the way." Yanna got up as she looked at Nik. "Are you going to join us?"

  "Yep, I want to see the rec area. I am curious how they merged the two." Nicole was referring to the combination rec/bio area that was implemented in the final design.

  Derrick followed Ben to the upper level doorway. After a brief wave of his CCD, Ben opened the door and moved into the stairwell. Ascending the stairs, they entered the landing that acted as the access point to the upper portion of the ship. Three doors exited the area. Two were laboratory entrances and the third was to the recreation/bio area.

  The four of them stood together briefly before Ben moved toward the Biology Lab entrance. Using his CCD, he removed the lock and opened the door. Inside was a tiny room equipped with a decontamination shower and suits that would need to be equipped before moving further.

  "You guys are welcome to come check it out." Ben said, "Just let me know so I can approve additional heat signatures in the room with me."

  "I wanted to look at the rec area first, I'm sure I will see enough of the bio-lab over the next year." Derrick continued to the rec area door.

  "Yanna, Nik?" Ben extended the invite more specifically.

  "If you don't mind, I am actually curious." Yanna replied with her usual lust for information.

  "I just wanted a quick look at the rec area, honestly." Nik was in a similar boat to Derrick. She had mentioned several times that she respected the scientific pursuits and their contributions to the world but just couldn't find a personal interest in it. Her role as Yanna’s assistant was sure to provide ample opportunity to observe the labs.

  "Okay, maybe we will join you guys after we look around in here." Ben bid them farewell and he stepped inside the lab decontamination area with Yanna, the door closing behind them.

  Derrick moved to the aft doorway and access to the rec area. As it slid open they were met with another staging room. They understood the reasoning behind the labs having it but were slightly confused as they stepped inside and readied for decontamination or decon as they called it. Derrick looked at Nik as the door closed behind them. A small sound preceded a noticeable change in humidity. The room was acting as an equalizer between the rec area and the rest of the ship.

  “I guess it’s just a humidity control chamber, not decon.” Right as Derrick finished his sentence, the two of them were blasted by the standard decontamination spray. Derrick noticed Nik looking at him with a smirk as the opaque fog slowly dissipated.

  “You sounded so confident, I believed you.” Nik coughed slightly and waved her hand in front of her face, clearing the remaining fog. “I still don’t know if I believe how safe this stuff is.”

  “Smells like strawberries, that seems like an odd choice.” Derrick took several deep breaths, knowing the decon spray was deemed 100% safe for inhalation.

  “Doesn’t taste like strawberries.” Nik continued to cough as the inner door cracked and slid open.

  Light poured in from the newly designed rec/bio area. They were both shocked, in awe of the room’s splendor. They expected the
rooms to be combined but not on this level. During prep, the room was bare and held basic interfaces for recreational access training. The room that lay before them was magnificent. Seating areas and interfaces were scattered around the layout of the room amidst abundant foliage. It had a romantic feeling of a park with the casual comfort of a rec room. Derrick looked at Nik and noticed she was sharing the same excitement.

  "What is this?" Derrick said as he broke the end of his sentence with a laugh.

  Nik turned to meet his look and they both broke into a smile. "This is awesome!" She exclaimed.

  Before Derrick could respond, Nicole ran into the room and started touching some of the plants as she passed them. Her adoration for the room was contagious. Derrick could feel similar desires to touch everything growing around him. Trying to ignore the feeling, he followed her in at his own pace. Looking down, Derrick noticed the floor was grass with a few paths leading to certain areas.

  "Why didn't they tell us about this?" Nik asked, "I was expecting a few plants here or there, but this is way better."

  "I love it too, I am glad they weren't too specific. This is a great surprise to start the trip!" Derrick examined the room, embracing his curiosity.

  They both wandered the area that must have been easily two thousand square feet. Trees, bushes, flowers, and all manner of vegetation surrounded them as they moved through. At the back of the room there was a natural canopy that shaded an area from the artificial sunlight. Underneath were several lounging seats and even a hammock. The room had exceeded any expectations Derrick had for it. He envisioned spending a lot of time here over the next year.

  Turning his attention to Nicole, Derrick saw a childlike excitement in her that he had never seen. The way she ran and jumped into one of the loungers made him laugh.

  "I could get used to this." Nik said while throwing her arms behind her head.

  "Comfy?" Derrick enthusiastically inquired with a smile pinned to his face.