by Rick Chesler
“Suzette?”
“We couldn’t save her.”
“She wasn’t down in the pit?”
Blake flashed on the hideous monstrosity of the worm with Suzette infused into its physiology. He shuddered while he spoke. “Dallas, I’ll fill you in on the details when we get back to the LEM.”
“She’s not dead,” Caitlin blurted.
“What?” Dallas sounded uncharacteristically stunned.
Blake reached out and swatted Caitlin on the shoulder, glaring at her through their helmets. That didn’t shut her up, though.
“She’s...it’s so awful Dallas...we saw her, and she’s alive, technically, but...”
“She’s alive? Why didn’t you bring her back? Blake, what’s going on?”
Blake’s voice rose in pitch along with his anger. “I told you, Dallas, I’ll fill you in on the details when we get back. Suffice it to say for now that we could not rescue her. Now tell me about the status of the ship repairs, over.”
A lengthy pause ensued while Dallas digested this heavy development. Blake wondered if James Burton had overheard the radio message. “I concluded my troubleshooting of the guidance system, Blake, and I’m afraid the news is not good.” After a chorus of exasperated sighs, Dallas continued. “There’s an electronic part I need in order to fix it, and we do not carry a spare.”
Blake threw his head back in aggravation before responding. “Copy that, Dallas. Did you try contacting Mission Control to ask them to advise as to what, if any, components might be cannibalized out of other, less essential systems so that you might build the part we need?”
Caitlin nodded silently. It was a good idea, worth a try, since Mission Control had the man- and computer-power to comb through all of the ship’s specifications quickly, looking for a match with whatever resources were known to be aboard the spaceship. They could then instruct the astronauts accordingly. The approach had worked famously well on the ill-fated yet non-catastrophic Apollo 13 lunar mission.
But again, Dallas had bad news. “I tried, Blake, but was unable to establish communication, probably due to the dust storm at the spaceport they mentioned was approaching the last time I did talk to them.”
Silently, Caitlin corroborated this, but she didn’t want to bring up that she’d spoken to Ray, since he told her about Strat Knowles.
“But I’ve got another idea,” Dallas came back before Blake could voice his displeasure.
“Go ahead.”
They heard Dallas clear his throat. “Bear with me here, Blake. You might not like this on the surface, but I’ve thought it through and am convinced it’s our best shot at getting this system fixed in time.”
The phrase in time was an unspoken threat none of them needed to be reminded of, meaning that if they couldn’t fix the lander’s guidance system before their oxygen supply ran out, they’d have no choice but to attempt to rendezvous with the orbiting Command Module without it, a near-impossible task that almost surely would have them careening out into the void of space forever entombed in the LEM.
“Go ahead, Dallas.”
“You have a visual on Black Sky’s lander, correct?”
Blake glanced across the plain at his competitor’s LEM. “That’s affirmative.”
“You could drive over there and ask them for the part we need—an actuator—and then bring it back to me.”
A non-verbal passage of air issued from Blake’s mouth that made it clear he was not at all comfortable with this idea. They all knew that to have to approach Kennedy Haig, Blake’s longtime business rival, would be less than palatable for him.
“I know you don’t like asking for help, Blake,” Dallas said, “from anybody much less Kennedy, but we’re really in a bind here.”
“They sabotaged our rover!” Blake returned. “What makes you so sure they’d want to help us? Seems like quite the opposite to me.”
Caitlin voiced her opinion. “Blake, listen. Dallas is right. Obtaining that part is the easiest way to solve our problem. If Black Sky has one they’re willing to give us—and if they do, I bet they will— then that’s the simplest solution. Otherwise, what? At best, we wait some indeterminate period of time before communications with Mission Control are reestablished, and then explain the problem to them and wait for them to get back with a solution—assuming they can come up with one—and then we have to execute on it...”
She and Asami stared at him while Dallas reiterated that Black Sky was absolutely worth a try. “Please, for our sake, just put the bad blood between you and Kennedy aside for now in order to act like professionals and save our lives!” Caitlin pleaded.
Blake threw up his hands. “All right. Fine. We’ll go visit Black Sky. They’ll probably think we’re there about our rover, but then when I ask about the part instead, it’ll throw Kennedy for a loop, and I’ll enjoy that.”
The three of them started toward the rover until Dallas spoke again. “There’s one more thing I should tell you. About the creatures.”
“Go ahead.” Blake was pretty sure that he already knew all he wanted to know about those creatures. He resumed walking toward the rover, waving for the others to follow him.
“Martin had an incident with the specimen in the lab.”
“What happened?” Blake was becoming inured to bad news. It just kept coming, and he knew they couldn’t really handle much more, but at the same time he just didn’t seem to care. Whatever it was, he would deal with it. He had no choice.
“Martin says that the creatures—he says they may actually be worms although he’s not yet certain because he didn’t get a chance to dissect it—”
“Why didn’t he get a chance to dissect it? He didn’t want to kill it, I guess, since it’s the only one? Well, you can tell him not to worry about that; there are plenty more where that one came from.” Uncomfortable laughter from Caitlin and Asami.
“No, that’s not it. It exploded before he had the chance.”
“Exploded?”
“Yeah, as soon as he took the lid off the specimen container. Nothing left of it except liquid that sprayed all over his face.”
“What?!”
“Sounds like you heard me correctly.”
Blake reached the rover but he stood there without getting in while he concentrated on the radio exchange. “Is he okay?”
“No, he’s sick now.”
“He’s not praying yet, is he? Because if an atheist starts to pray, you know he’s sick as a dog, am I right?”
No one laughed. “It’s really not funny, Blake. He doesn’t look good at all, and seems to be getting worse. In fact, I have to get back to him now to evaluate possible surgical options, which is another reason to obtain this part from Black Sky—one less thing for me to deal with.”
“I’ll let you get back to it then,” Blake said, the closest he was likely to come to an apology.
“Real quick, let me tell you what Martin did find out before this happened. He said that these life forms will be attracted to high concentrations of oxygen, since oxygen is a limiting factor in their environment and they apparently have evolved to extract minute quantities of it from the soil.”
Asami nodded. “Makes sense, since all of the ones we’ve found so far have been underground.”
“Carry on.” Blake climbed behind the wheel of the rover while Caitlin took the shotgun seat and Asami got in the back. He pointed the vehicle toward the Black Sky lunar lander and accelerated.
28 | Is Anybody in There?
Blake had the rover at maximum speed, jostling them around as they approached their rival’s LEM. About the same size as theirs, a squat, polygonal thing with highly reflective surfaces, it was the lone human-made structure in sight, with the exception of the rover itself. When they were close enough that he worried they might think they were trying to ram them in retaliation for destroying their other rover, he cut speed, coasting to a stop a few meters from the craft.
The trio of moon explorers sat in the rover, watching
the spaceship.
“I don’t see any lights on at all,” Caitlin pointed out.
“No signs of activity whatsoever, really,” Asami added.
“Should we walk up and knock?” Caitlin asked without moving from the rover.
Blake fiddled with controls on his spacesuit. “Let me try to raise them on the radio first. I’d prefer not to surprise them too much by knocking on the door.” Blake tried various radio frequencies to get in touch with Black Sky, including Mission Control, but received no response.
“Mission Control is still down?” Caitlin’s voice belied her concern.
Blake nodded. “Looks that way.”
“What should we do?” Asami glanced around at the ground surrounding the rover. Saw nothing unusual. Blake flashed the rover’s headlights at the LEM. Waited a few seconds and did it again. Still no reaction. He dismounted from the rover. Caitlin and Asami followed suit.
They walked up to the lander’s entry hatch and observed it. No discernible activity. They tried knocking on the side of the craft. Again, no response.
As they turned around to go back to the rover, they saw two moonwalkers wearing different suits from those of Outer Limits approaching over a small rise. Blake suggested they walk toward them to greet them, so they don’t feel threatened that they might be sabotaging their ship. When they had walked for only a few seconds their shared comm channel crackled with a new voice.
“This is Black Sky EVA party to Outer Limits, do you copy?”
Blake didn’t hesitate to respond. “We copy you, Black Sky.”
“State your intentions, over.”
“Don’t worry, we come in peace. Right, girls?”
Blake knew the two professional women would be miffed at being referred to as ‘girls’, but he had to do something to seem amenable to Black Sky. Perhaps they wouldn’t feel as threatened knowing that two out of three of the visitors were female?
The pair of moonwalkers slowed their steps as they neared the newcomers. “What is it that you want?”
Blake didn’t recognize the voice. He was glad that it wasn’t his old enemy, Kennedy Haig. He’d have to see him inside the ship, of that he was sure, but somehow not having to see him right now made him feel much better. “We have a favor to ask of you. We need a part for our guidance system and were hoping you might be able to assist us.”
“I didn’t know we were in the lunar hardware business,” one of the Black Sky men joked to the other, eliciting a hearty laugh. “But seriously, we’d have to clear that type of request with Kennedy. He’s inside, taking a nap, probably.”
“Can we come in?” Blake asked.
The two spacewalkers stepped up to the Outer Limits rivals and stared at them, helmet to helmet. Caitlin noticed that their suits were extremely dusty, almost as if they’d been rolling around on the ground.
Suddenly, a new voice broke in over the comm. “Blake, old chum. Caught me in my afternoon nap. No matter where we are, you still always find a way to borrow something from me, don’t you? Money...ideas...spare spacecraft parts....”
An uncomfortable silence ensued that was broken by Kennedy himself. “It’s okay, let them in. Go ahead. They’re welcome for a few minutes, at least.”
The two Black Sky astronauts turned in the direction of their lander. “This way.” They walked toward it with the Outer Limits team close behind. Caitlin’s gaze wandered a few feet off to her left and she saw movement. Then she realized it was a slew of the small creatures, rolling, digging, writhing in the lunar soil. She picked up her pace, catching up to the others. She saw no reason to bring it up right now.
Then the lander’s airlock door was opening and the two Black Sky astronauts welcomed the Outer Limits team inside.
29 |In the Belly of the Beast
“You can take your helmets off now. We’re pressurized.” The two Black Sky astronauts who’d escorted the Outer Limits team inside waved toward the main cabin of the lander, where three other spacemen, none of whom wore a spacesuit, waved an awkward greeting. Caitlin removed her helmet first, then Asami, and then, as though shy to reveal his face, Blake. When everyone inside had removed their helmets, they said nothing for a few seconds while they looked at one another, especially Blake and Kennedy. Moon dwellers, all, united by a common bond of deep space travel.
“Greetings, Earthlings, I am Kennedy Haig!” Everyone laughed except Blake, but even he cracked a smile.
“I bet you always wanted to say that!” Caitlin said, eager to break the ice.
“You know it. And who might you lovely ladies be?”
At this, Blake cocked his head to one side. “Seriously, Kennedy. You know who they are. Like you haven’t studied our crew roster.”
Caitlin shot Blake a cautioning glance that said, Ease up, we’re here to ask this guy for a big favor!
But Kennedy didn’t seem to take offense. A man of medium height and build with short brown, curly hair, he shrugged it off. “Yes, well, a lot’s been on my mind lately.” He looked about his ship, and the others followed his gaze. Now that Blake took a closer look, things didn’t seem all that perfect, certainly not what the world had come to expect from shooting star Kennedy Haig. Much of the cabin was cast in darkness, the air was uncomfortably warm, and a small cascade of liquid splattered on the floor in a corner.
Before Blake could ask about the condition of the ship, Kennedy indicated the man to his left. He introduced him as Pete Stenson. “This gentleman, you should know, is our FAA representative.”
At this, Blake nodded cordially. “Ah yes, we came down with a case of one of those as well. We left him back at the ship.” But the shared joke between them didn’t last. “So tell me, Kennedy,” Blake asked point blank, or Point Blake, as a leading business magazine had once headlined its cover with, featuring a photo of the Space 2.0 entrepreneur beneath. “What’s going on here?”
Kennedy swiveled his head this way and that, as if having trouble finding something in disarray. “Going on? What...oh, the general state of disarray, is that what you mean?”
“That’s precisely what I mean.”
Kennedy gave a noncommittal gesture. “Living on the moon isn’t easy, old chum. But I guess you knew that, since here you are to beg for spare parts, I’m told, is that it?”
“Easy, Kennedy, they’re just—” one of the Black Sky astronauts began, before Kennedy cut him off.
“Hold on, Arnie, okay? Let me check for the part. I’ll be right back.” Kennedy turned and walked into an alcove toward the rear of the ship, followed by another of his crew. The other two—Arnie (“Arnold Strausen, but call me Arnie”) and an Asian man who introduced himself as Takeo Matsuda—along with Pete Stenson, the Black Sky flight FAA rep, walked closer to the Outer Limits group until Stenson spoke to them in a low voice.
“There’s no time to waste so I’ll get right to the point. It’s my professional assessment that Kennedy’s pride is keeping him from admitting how bad things really are here.”
One of the Black Sky astronauts chimed in. “The condition of the ship is even worse than it looks.”
Stenson went on after nodding. “It’s true. This ship is not in operational condition. We could not leave the moon right now if we wanted to.”
“What about our rover? What happened to it?” Caitlin asked.
Takeo nodded while casting an unwavering glance her way. “I admit that we did that— Arnie, here,” he said, indicating the astronaut standing next to him, who frowned along with an unenthusiastic wave, “and myself. But I can assure you that the serious damage was a complete accident. We only intended to scavenge non-essential electrical parts from it that were not critical to its functioning, but I accidently tripped and grabbed onto it to break my fall, which unfortunately sent it tumbling down the crater.”
“We’re very sorry,” Arnie finished, while Caitlin gave an a-ha nod. The mystery of the lunar rover had been solved.
Blake glanced toward the back of the ship, where Kennedy was no
t yet visible. “Did the rover parts enable you to make your repairs, or will they?”
Stenson and the two Black Sky spacemen shook their heads in unison. “They did not. One of the capacitors we took turned out to be the wrong size. We’re stuck here until we can fix this ship, and right now we’re stymied as to how to do it. Is that a correct assessment, gentlemen?” He deferred to the two astronauts, both of whom nodded emphatically.
“What caused the technical problems with the ship in the first place?” Caitlin asked.
Stenson cast a backward glance before responding. “Basically I’d say it’s engineering failures precipitated by Kennedy Haig pushing the timetable too hard to get into space, to beat your team. Pure and simple,” he concluded with a shrug. No one disagreed, but no one agreed either, so Stenson pressed his case, clearly scared for his own safety at this point.
“It’s my contention that Kennedy deliberately withheld information about the state of certain spacecraft systems from the FAA and other regulatory agencies in the days prior to launch, information that had it been known would have led to a Black Sky launch delay.”
“Excuse me? What nonsense did I just hear?” They jumped at the voice of Kennedy, who had appeared in the center of the ship without being heard, still some distance away but probably close enough to follow the conversation.
“Relax, Kennedy,” Blake said, “we were just discussing the ships, yours and mine, and trying to figure out what needs to be done so that we can both get back to one hundred percent working order again.”
“That’s not what it sounded like to me,” Kennedy said, eyeing Stenson. “It sounded to me like Mr. Stenson, here, was accusing me of negligence!” He stepped to within arm’s reach of the FAA man. “Is there something you’d like to say to my face?”