“Was your crew completely human?” Jason asked.
“Yes, this was a human ship.”
“Where did this ship come from?” continued Jason, seeking more information.
“That information is classified,” the computer responded.
“I still don’t see any way to reach that beacon,” Greg stated, unhappily. If they could shut down the beacon, they could use the radio on the rover to contact their orbiting command module and speak to Mission Control on Earth.
“There has to be a way,” replied Jason, feeling angry with himself and refusing to give up. What was he missing? He knew that there had to be a way.
“We’re going to have to start back shortly,” Greg said, glancing down at the power reading on his suit. “It took us quite some time to get to the Command Center, and we have just enough power to get back to the rover with some still in reserve.”
Jason stared at Greg, wide eyed in astonishment. How could he have overlooked the obvious? “Computer,” he said quickly. “What is the ship’s current power level?”
“Emergency power is at .045 percent,” the voice replied.
Greg looked back at Jason with renewed excitement in his eyes. “Power,” he said excitedly. “It’s almost out of power.”
“How long until all power is exhausted and the emergency beacon shuts down?” Jason asked.
“Four hours and twenty-two minutes at current power usage,” the voice responded.
Turning to Greg, Jason smiled. “I think it’s time for us to return to the rover. Once the power fails and the beacon stops, we can contact Mission Control through the command module.”
“We’re going to survive then?” Greg asked. He realized with immense relief that he would indeed get to see his wife and son again. It might just take a while.
“I think so,” Jason responded. He then turned and faced the console where the computer voice had been coming from. “Maintain current power usage until the emergency beacon shuts off.”
“Affirmative,” the voice answered. “Power levels will be maintained until emergency power is depleted.”
Jason and Greg helped each other put their spacesuit helmets back on. The air in the room was pumped out and the hatch swung open. Carefully following their marked path, they retraced their steps until they found themselves back at the large hatch. Stepping back outside, they walked over to the waiting rover.
They both sat down in the rover and hooked their suits up to the rover’s air and power systems. Now they just had to wait until the interference disappeared from their radio receiver. Once it was clear, they could send a message back to Earth. For several minutes, both men sat staring at the massive spaceship that lay against the crater wall in front of them.
“How do we tell the people back on Earth what we have found?” asked Greg, gazing at the ship in awe. It was hard to imagine something this large flying in space, much less between the stars.
“I don’t think we say anything until we get back to Earth,” replied Jason, thinking about all the ramifications of their discovery. This would turn the scientific world upside down. “This discovery has the possibility of advancing the human race hundreds of years in a relatively short time.”
“It will have to be shared,” Greg responded. Their find was going to shake a lot of things up down on Earth. “This discovery is too big for any single country.”
The hours passed quickly, and then suddenly the static on the radio receiver vanished. For the first time in several days, the radio was clear of the ever-present static that had been with them since they started their ill-fated descent to the lunar surface.
“The static's gone,” Greg said with relief in his voice. The power in the ship had been exhausted.
Reaching forward, Jason set the radio to transmit and took a deep breath. His signal would be relayed by the command module to Earth.
“This is lunar mission New Beginning to Mission Control. Do you read? Over.” Jason repeated the message several times and then waited, hoping for a response.
-
Down on Earth, Elizabeth Johnson was in Mission Control holding her infant son. She was sitting in the observation room gently rocking her baby. For several days now, she had stayed in Mission Control waiting for word on her husband Greg. Her brother’s wife sat next to her and was helping to take care of the baby. She had slept very little and had spent a lot of time praying for the safe return of her husband. Commander Strong’s sister had just stepped out to get them something to drink.
They both looked up startled when screams and yells of excitement suddenly erupted from the men and women in Mission Control. The director of Mission Control, Tom Hays, turned and sprinted toward the observation room, then swung the door open.
“They're okay!” he said excitedly, his eyes glowing. “We have Commander Strong on the communications channel!”
Elizabeth looked at her sister and started crying tears of joy. Then she looked down at her infant son. His father was okay.
“Where’s Katherine?” Tom asked excitedly. He couldn’t wait to tell Jason’s sister that her brother was on the communications channel.
“She stepped out for a moment,” Elizabeth’s sister replied. “I’ll go get her.”
-
Jason and Greg were back in the lunar lander. They now had continuous communication with Mission Control. Jason had spent over an hour explaining the current predicament they were in with the lunar lander. Several mission specialists had been called in to evaluate the dire situation.
“We are going to spend some time evaluating your situation, Jason,” Tom said over the radio. “For the time being, we want you to get some rest. We will contact you as soon as we know something.”
“Confirmed, Mission Control,” replied Jason, shutting down the transmitter.
“They didn’t ask about the interference,” Greg commented with a puzzled look upon his face. “I wonder why?”
“They had to have picked it up,” Jason responded. He also had wondered why they hadn’t asked about it. “I don’t want to say anything unless they bring it up first.”
“So what now?” Greg asked. Tom had arranged for him to talk briefly with his wife. Greg felt as if an immense load had been lifted off his shoulders. Jason had also talked briefly with his sister. Greg was relieved that everyone knew they were safe.
“Let’s get some sleep,” suggested Jason, feeling exhausted from the day’s events. Tom had promised to get word to Jason’s brother that he was safe. He knew his sister was relieved. He also knew he was going to hear about this when he got back home.
-
When their sleep period was over, Tom contacted them again.
“It’s the opinion of the experts that it’s not worth the risk to try to set the lunar lander back upright. The risks of more damage, or even a hull rupture, are too great.”
“Then what’s the plan?” Jason asked.
He had been afraid it would be impractical to try to put the lunar lander back in an upright position. It was beginning to sound as if they were going to be stranded on the Moon for quite some time.
“We can launch several supply drones to the Moon,” Tom replied in a calm voice. “Both can be landed close to your current position. However, it will take us nearly two weeks to get them ready. They’re going to have to go through a lot of modifications.”
Jason looked inquiringly over at Greg. That would be putting them right on the edge of their food and water supply. It would take some tight rationing.
“We can do it but just barely,” replied Greg, doing some quick calculating.
“Affirmative, Mission Control,” Jason responded. Then, after thinking for a moment, he continued. “We have some special equipment we would like to request. It looks as if we’re going to be stranded here for quite some time.”
“At least four months,” Tom said. “It will take that long to get another lunar lander ready that we can land and then get it back up safely to the command mo
dule.”
Jason and Greg looked at each other and then looked around the inside of the cramped lunar lander. Four months in here was going to seem like an eternity.
“We understand,” Jason responded. “That’s why we’re requesting some special equipment so we can get by until then.”
“We will do what we can to accommodate you,” Tom replied. “Just remember, we only have so much room on the two supply drones.”
“We understand, Mission Control,” Jason replied. “We will get back to you shortly.”
“What kind of supplies did you have in mind?” Greg asked curiously. There just wasn’t much room in the lander to store too much more.
“The wrecked spacecraft has a number of compartments that are airtight. Particularly the Command Center and the immediate area around it. If we had a proper power source, some oxygen containers, and another air recycler, we could repressurize part of it. Even if it’s just the Command Center, we would have a lot more room than the lander. It would also give us an opportunity to explore that wreck. That would give us something to do for the next four months.”
Greg was quiet as he considered the possibility. “If we had the right equipment we could learn a lot. It would definitely be a lot better than sitting around inside this lander for four months.”
“Then let’s work on a supply list,” Jason suggested. “I think Tom already suspects something isn’t right. When he sees the list of supplies we’re requesting, he is probably going to suspect that we have found something significant. If they know about the interference, which I suspect they do, it won’t be too hard for them to put two and two together.”
For the next several hours, they put together a list of supplies they would need. They were figuring on one drone for basic supplies such as oxygen, food, water, clothes, and other necessities. The second drone was all supplies to explore the crashed ship with.
When they were through with their list, Jason contacted Mission Control once more. He waited as Tom was summoned and they began going over the list. When Tom heard what they were requesting for the second drone, he became very quiet.
“We will do as you ask,” he said finally. “I think I comprehend the importance of all this equipment. It sounds as if you want to set up a habitat away from the lander. I can understand you and Greg not wanting to stay in those cramped quarters for four months. There are a few more things you have not thought of that we will include to help. Is there anything else?”
“Not at the moment,” Jason replied. “We will let you know if we think of something.”
“What do you think?” Greg asked after they finished talking to Mission Control.
“Tom obviously suspects we have found something,” Jason replied. “I felt that when I was talking to him.”
“Then I guess now all we have to do is wait,” commented Greg, glancing around the small confines of the lander. “I wish I had brought a deck of cards.”
Jason smiled and reached down into a small compartment next to his seat. He had a few personal items stored there. He pulled out an unopened deck of playing cards. “Poker?” he asked, gazing innocently at Greg.
“Sure,” Greg replied with a smile. Maybe these next two weeks wouldn’t be so bad after all.
-
Two weeks later, they watched as the first drone slowly descended and landed a little over one-mile from the lander. A short time later, the second drone also landed but in the opposite direction. They had instructions to go immediately to the first drone.
Using the lunar rover, they reached the first drone and quickly opened it. Inside the small cargo compartment were numerous small containers and cylinders. The cylinders obviously contained oxygen. The rest of the containers were all labeled with a list of their contents.
It took them three trips to bring everything to the lunar lander. Once at the lander, they moved several of the containers inside. There was one small container about the size of a briefcase that was labeled open first.
Once safely inside the lander, Jason opened the small container. The container held the latest laptop with expanded memory and graphics and a folder marked "Urgent Read First".
Opening the folder, Jason discovered that it contained a long list of possible scenarios that they might have encountered on the Moon.
“This is one hell of a list,” Greg commented as they read it. “Everything from competitors from Earth to alien contact. Someone has a really good imagination down there.”
“It looks like Tom and his people tried to cover all the bases,” Jason replied as he read the list.
There were over two hundred different scenarios listed. Each one had a code at the end that was to be transmitted to Earth. It looked as if the list started with the most likely scenario down to the least likely.
“Here’s what we need,” Jason said finally. “Wrecked alien spacecraft discovered, no survivors. Code 187ASD.”
“What if there had been survivors?” Greg asked thoughtfully.
“Easy,” Jason replied. “The one directly below that says wrecked alien spacecraft discovered, alien survivors.”
Greg opened another small container he had brought on board. He smiled as he handed Jason a medium sized bulb of drinking water. They each had one and felt much better afterwards. They had been rationing their water very carefully for days.
-
They transmitted the code to Mission Control, knowing it was going to stir up a lot of questions and excitement. For nearly an hour, there was no response. Finally, Tom came back on the radio.
“Jason, we recognize the code. Will you confirm it please?”
Jason retransmitted the code once more. Then they waited.
“Thank you, Jason; you have stirred up quite a ruckus down here. The laptop in the container contains a set of codes we will be using to communicate with from now on. We are also setting up a more secure channel for communication. Activate the laptop and follow the instructions there.”
Jason did so. The first thing Greg and he saw was a request for a detailed report of everything that had transpired since they had crashed on the Moon. For nearly four hours, the two worked on the report. When they felt it was as complete as possible, they hit the transmit icon on the laptop. They had also included their plans to move to the wreck and try to make a small section of it livable.
For nearly eight hours, there was no communication with Earth. Several times Jason was tempted to establish radio contact, but something told him to wait.
“I guess we really stirred up a hornet’s nest down there,” mumbled Greg, wishing they would hear something. He was also thinking how long four months were going to be without seeing his family.
It was a few minutes later that the laptop chirped, indicating that it was receiving an incoming message. What it said surprised both of them.
“They got the president involved,” Greg commented, his eyes widening. That wasn’t too surprising. This was something that couldn’t be kept away from the government.
“They’re going to modify the experimental lander that’s still in the test facility,” spoke Jason, reading aloud. “They’re sending four specialists to aid in our investigation of the wreck. Four weeks until they can get here.”
“I guess they’re going to strand them here with us,” Greg commented. It would be nice to have four more people to talk to. However, this did bring up the question of how Mission Control planned to get all six of them back home.
“They are also sending a lot more equipment and supplies. All of it will be landed in the crater where the crashed ship is. It looks as if they will be launching one supply drone per week once they get started.”
“That’s one hell of a lot of money someone is shelling out,” Greg responded.
Jason leaned back and smiled. “Yes, it is; but look at what we’re going to get to do. Just think about what we might learn in the alien ship, especially if we can get the computer working again.”
The two took a few moments to think. T
hey would be making history. This was where the human race first made contact with an advanced civilization! The key questions were how was this civilization a human one, and where was it located? The galaxy was a big place. They also wondered what had caused the ship to crash. Had it been in a battle with another spacecraft? There were so many unanswered questions.
Greg opened up another container that had his name on it. Inside were several pictures of his family as well as a private letter from his wife. He gazed for a long moment at the picture of his infant son. Greg looked out one of the viewports in the direction of the crater that contained the wrecked spacecraft. Someday, when his son was old enough, he might travel to the stars. The secret to that was resting in the crater thirty miles distant. Greg leaned back and smiled; the future looked extremely bright.
-
On the wrecked alien spacecraft, a small dim light was glowing on a console. The ship’s AI was fully activated. The AI had carefully watched the two humans in the Command Center. It had made sure the computer listed the remaining power on its list of ship systems. It had wanted to see if these new humans were capable of figuring out how to shut the emergency beacon off. They had passed the test. Now the AI waited. It had its own internal power source. It had much to tell this new human race.
The End
Moon Wreck: Revelations
Chapter Three
Jason stood in his spacesuit at the top of the ridge, gazing down at the wrecked spaceship in the crater. It was still difficult to accept that a spaceship manned by humans had crashed here on the Moon many years ago. The main section of the wreck was on the far side of the crater and relatively intact. There were so many unanswered questions. Where had the ship come from? What was it doing here? Why was it manned by humans? What had caused it to crash? Jason took a deep breath and shifted his mind back to the job at hand. Those questions would have to wait for a while.
He was using a special camera sent up by Mission Control to take photos of all the different wreckage scattered across the mile wide crater. The wreckage was covered with lunar dust, and there was a massive amount of wreckage. Jason wondered if there had been an explosion in the ship, which had split it into pieces. Greg was down on the floor of the crater walking from one mangled piece to the next as Jason took the photos. Greg would stop and stand by a piece of wreckage so they would have something to show the comparative sizes of the debris they were taking pictures of.
Slaver Wars 1: Moon Wreck Page 4