Titan Cruel Moon

by Kate Rauner

  The reactor was gone. In its place, slightly off-center, was a shallow crater. It would have been smooth as a skating rink except for broken power cables protruding from the ice.

  A flier touched down gracefully beside him and a suit-to-suit channel opened. "You think the reactor's still melting its way into Titan?" Maliah asked.

  "Yes, until it hits the rock core," Fynn said. "Nothing can shut the fission reaction down. When the dome lifted, the reactor toppled off its platform." He shrugged. The suit was pliable enough for Maliah to see the motion.

  "What are you doing out here?" she asked.

  "I ran a line from the refueling station, from the oxygen tanks. A lot of nitrogen leaked into the village so breathable levels are down."

  "Yeah, I saw Mom's message to avoid exertion and report nausea and headaches. I canceled calisthenics."

  Fynn bit off a sarcastic reply. It was good to return to a normal routine, if anything on Titan could ever be normal. "That makes sense. Oxygen will be back to Earth-standard soon. Dad was smart to locate the refueling station off a ways. It wasn't damaged."

  Maliah ignored the reference to Yash. "I'm glad you handled that. See? I can share decisions."

  Fynn turned to look through her faceplate. "Are you leaving for the Black and White Hill?"

  The helmet display made her golden skin look gray. "As soon as the pallbearers are outside."

  Five Kin had died when their lungs froze to uselessness. Their mother was treating another eight, who seemed likely to recover to varying degrees. Magnus was among them, frostbitten but alive.

  "Max is coming," Maliah said.

  "We owe him a lot." Max had saved the greenhouse. In a piece of troubleshooting Yash would have admired, with help from a few of his crew, he'd shoved bins and packaging into the tunnel to dam out the frozen fog. "We're not going to starve for lack of food, and you're not going to starve us in some weird version of training anymore, right?"

  Deep lines creased the grayness of her face. "Barracks discipline is part of who we are." She kicked at a lump of shredded plastic. "Is something like this going to happen again, after the colony's been here for a few years?"

  "I don't think so. Casper's reviewing the design specs for the dome floors. A few carefully placed holes with small blowers, and Titan's atmosphere can flow through the bottom layer, venting the heat. We're going to make it, and when Liam sends down..."

  "Liam." Her face darkened. "The Commander seems to think the Herschel belongs to him and his pilots."

  "They're Kin. They'll need food and power from the surface as much as we'll need the space station."

  That reminded Fynn that the station with its refuge of centrifugal-force gravity was still months away. He pointed at his sister's belly. "How are you feeling?"

  A half-smile softened Maliah's face. "A little sick at times. It reminds me of our trip in the space plane. Mom says that's common."

  She tilted her head, listening to a second channel, Fynn supposed.

  "Are you coming? We're about to leave, to lay new martyrs at Tanaka's feet."

  A hard lump formed in Fynn's stomach. He shook his head. "I'd go to honor our fallen Kin, but not to honor Tanaka."

  "You're a fool. Unity is more important than anything Tanaka did. That's where the Kin's greatness lies. I could order you to come."

  "But why would you? We have to live together in this colony, and you need my crew."

  "I've got all the training videos. Anyone could learn to run the furnaces."

  "My crew had training beyond your videos. We need each other."

  "There's only one Kin."

  "We were one Kin on Earth, and we were one Kin again when it mattered, sealing the air tunnel."

  "Be careful, Fynn. You look like a hero to some people, but I think you're a fool. Don't encourage me to see you as a traitor."

  She flipped her flier's blower into operation and left him in the rubble. Pallbearers with five bodies strapped to stretchers met her on the dock ramp. The group rose slowly into the air and banked across the peninsula.

  That's when he noticed a single figure close the airlock door and bounce toward him.

  "Hi, Fynn. It's me," Rica said.

  He hadn't expected her. "Hi. How's Casper?"

  "As whiney as a little brother, but he'll be fine. Say, do you know there's a whole set of barracks panels and utilities in the Gravitron's cargo?"

  "Yeah. I read the manifest. My dad didn't want to waste storage space in the Gravitron's segment, so he loaded materials for a second village. He believed we'd have babies and need the space, that families would colonize Titan." Pain encircled Fynn's throat with an unexpected grasp. Grief was like that, a sudden enveloping surge that left him cold and weak and then faded.

  "Well, we're not waiting for families," Rica said. "Mika and Olsen talked to their friends. We're gonna assemble barracks as soon as we can haul that cargo through the tunnel. There are Kin who want to join our crew and live with us in the furnace dome."

  As grief faded, the suit pushed heat back into Fynn's numbed hands and feet. Maliah wouldn't like it, but maybe more living space would lessen everyone's stress. The colony would survive and, maybe, get a glimpse of paradise. After all, they were Kin.

  Fynn cleared his throat. "Rica, I want to ask something. About you and Casper. Are you a couple?" Did that sound stupid? Too personal? But, after saving the colony together, he should be able to ask a personal question. It took her a long time to answer.

  Titan's sky cast orange shadows across her face, but her tone was thoughtful, as if she'd never considered the possibility before. "We never were. Not really. A group of us hung out together in school, and then at the spaceport. But, no. I guess I'm alone."

  Standing in the crater of the ruined fission dome, watching pallbearers disappear into the murky sky, and remembering his father - despite all of that, a spark of optimism warmed Fynn's chest.

  "You're not alone." He reached out a hand and Rica's grip penetrated the thick glove. None of them were alone.

  Together, they gazed across the lake. Today's particular shade of auburn sky reflected perfectly in the methane, blending into the lake and erasing the horizon. The shore's necklace of dark sandy ice encircled everything in the world that mattered. "It looks exactly like I expected," Rica said. "But more, if that makes sense. Titan's the only thing that's been predictable since we left Earth."

  "That's because it's not human," Fynn said.

  ###

  Thanks for reading. Please leave a review. A sentence or two is all it takes for other readers to find a newbie author like me. I appreciate your help!

  Keep reading for links to the real Titan, including amazing images from the Huygens lander. You'll also find more books by me. --Kate--

  Learn About Titan

  A mission by NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Italian Space Agency landed the Huygens probe on Titan's surface on January 15, 2005. Here's a picture of what the little lander saw. It parachuted onto dry land, but since there are methane lakes on Titan, it was designed to float if necessary.

  Here's a link to a You Tube from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, captioned, with actual video of the landing on Titan. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msiLWxDayuA]

  A video including the same landing with nifty extra images and narration is here. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L471ct7YDo]

  These links worked when I published the book, but the internet is an ephemeral place. If a link is broken, search on Huygens descent. And find an excellent summary in Wikipedia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titan_(moon)] --Kate--

  Also by Kate Rauner

  Fynn and the Titan colony aren't safe yet. Their story continues with the second book in the Titan trilogy, due out in late 2019. Can't wait? Join a Mars colony today.

  Colony on Mars

  Do you dream of living on Mars? Journey through interplanetary space with your team, use robots to build stone habitats, and feel the deadly grandeur of a barren
planet. Explore and share the settlers' dangers and triumphs. But remember, this is a one-way trip, and Mars is a hostile planet. Will you be the first human on Mars or the last?

  From twelve pioneering settlers in a near-future colony through generations, join settlers as they battle for survival, sometimes with the deadly Red Planet and sometimes with each other. Build a life on Mars.

  All five books in the series have reached Kindle's top 5% of ebooks. Read one today.

  Find them all on Amazon and other favorite stores, check out the value priced Mars Colony Box Set and visit Kate's author page.

  See you on Mars.

  Glory on Mars

  Something is terribly wrong on Mars. A strange illness threatens the first pioneers and tragic deaths may not be accidents. Emma and her friends wanted to explore, but with no way back to Earth, they struggle to survive on the deadly Red Planet.

  Born on Mars

  Contacting recent settlers half a planet away may be the only hope for a rebellious young man's failing colony, though conflicts the newcomers bring with them from Earth could be deadly.

  Hermit on Mars

  Sig's life is falling apart, so his mother's call for help seems like a welcome escape. But he isn't ready for the threats at her remote cavern, or on the surface of the lethal Red Planet.

  Water on Mars

  Newly arrived in Mars' largest town, a girl just wants to have fun. But her new boss is crazy, she must work on the planet's perilous surface, and there's a dark side to the colony that threatens to kill them all. Maybe this isn't the best time to be Mars-born.

  Storm on Mars

  Zeker joins the elite Tower Guilds to change Mars. He swears trouble isn't his fault, but whether it's accidents or dodging solar flares, if something weird happens, Zeker's close by. Maybe neuroplasticity treatments didn't fix his brain.

  Short Reads to Fit Your Busy Day

  Dragon Bones a Fantastic Tale

  Two desperate brothers find misery in California's Gold Rush until a Chinese doctor promises them riches. They should have asked, at what price?

  Two Fantastic Tales

  A trio of physics students learn that theory is safer than practice.

  A lonely woman on a deadly mission receives a second chance, if she can seize it before it's too late.

  Three Fantastic Tales

  Burritos and his daughter's birthday party keep a computer developer away from his artificial intelligence project, but he'll never succeed without them.

  A painter ensnared in his master's Renaissance studio earns a deadly escape.

  For a micro spaceship, one of hundreds crossing interstellar space to search for life, sacrifice is part of the mission.

  Jupiter Diving and other Short Reads in Science Fiction and Fantasy

  From a ship mining helium-3 in Jupiter's atmosphere, Kelly launches a probe to search for life in the ocean of a Jovian moon. In the title story, Jupiter Diving, she finds more than she expected.

  Enter colorful and dangerous worlds. From an angel's photo op on Mars, to the agony of a berserker warrior, and an astronaut's cries for help, you'll find thirteen tales plus opening chapters and vignettes from Kate's Colony on Mars series.

  Receive news on all Kate's writing projects, plus book offers and flash fiction - click now to join the Readers' Club at http://eepurl.com/bCpx1v

  Thanks

  Thanks to Christopher P. McKay, NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, for answering questions about Titan and for providing a copy of his concept paper, Titan as the Abode of Life, Life 2016, 6, 8.

  Also to EJ Randolph, author of the science fiction series Federation Diplomat, for her endless patience and support critiquing multiple drafts of this book.

  And to critter.org where writers generously critique each other's' works.

  For whatever success I have, I owe thanks to many people. Only my mistakes are entirely mine. --Kate--

  Connect with Kate

  You'll find Kate Rauner at many favorite sites. Visit her blog for short posts on science news, science fiction, and some science-inspired poetry. Or follow her on Facebook, Twitter @katerauner, and YouTube. Contact her at katerauner@gmail.com.

  Huygens probe lands on Titan, artist's image

  Copyright and License Notes

  Titan is authored by Kate Rauner, published by Kate Rauner, and copyright 2018 Kate Rauner.

  This ebook is licensed only for your personal enjoyment and may not be re-sold or given away to other people. This ebook may only be acquired via purchase or through your retailer's or library's loan/subscription program (where available) or directly from the author. If you're reading this book and acquired it some other way, please return to your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy.

  Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Cover by Kate Rauner, copyright 2018. The surface of Titan is an artist's conception courtesy of NASA/JPL/ESA, https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA06434. The domes are from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Blue-dome-Santorini.JPG. The little yellow robot is actually a crab from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:101116_Ghost_crab_Gnaraloo_Bay_Rookery.JPG and the ship is a NASA Mars rover concept with stubby wings added, from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Humans_on_Mars.jpg

  Images have been cropped, backgrounds removed, and colors adjusted.

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