Theo just shrugged his shoulders. It was late in the evening of day sixty-seven of this journey when Theo left the observation deck and entered the hallway that led to the Probe Control Room. He was headed toward the most important final exam of his young life. Even though it was just an exam, Theo felt that his future hung in the balance, just swaying in the gravitational pull of the cosmos.
Little did Theo Starling know, but he was about to meet the very thing that wanted to kill him and everyone aboard Odyssey.
CHAPTER 2
THE FINAL EXAM
At the end of the hallway near the Observation Deck, Theo and Sam approached Ravi Starling who was shaking his head in disappointment. He was the youngest aboard the shuttle, soon to turn thirteen. He was Theo’s younger half-brother. They shared much in common, just not a mother or the same color hair.
Ravi’s black hair was longer than Theo’s closely shaven head. Both had always been on the thin side and getting thinner eating only freeze-dried meals and blue nutrient tablets. Ravi Starling’s claim to fame: he was the first human baby born in space. His second claim to fame: he had never been to Earth or any other planet.
“You’re late,” Ravi said.
“You’re short,” Theo said.
“And a mutant,” Sam added.
“You’re still late and I’m growing and I don’t get why you call me mutant,” Ravi replied.
“Which is why we call you it,” Sam said.
“Oh, I get it. You’re jealous,” Ravi said.
“Baloney,” Sam said.
Despite Ravi’s youth he considered himself a fully formed genius on everything and Theo considered him something more than a brat.
To Theo and many others, Ravi was basically a freak, a little science freak who wanted to know all the insane little details about Odyssey, the mission and especially about Earth – the place he had never even visited. Frankly, Ravi Starling was the poster boy for space.
Ravi’s whole life was an experiment. Even with the advancements made in counteracting low gravity, Ravi already had 4% less bone density than an earthbound boy his age. His mind was like a sponge since he retained facts and statistics and details that no person in his right mind should remember. He wanted to know everything about everything and pretty much he knew things about Earth and history and sports and culture that no one wanted to remember.
By day three of the current mission, Ravi had been nicknamed “Chief Pest.”
By day eleven, everyone was just calling him “Mutant.” While he was all human, his status as the first born space baby stayed with him wherever he went.
“You look nervous,” Ravi said to Theo.
“I’m just tired,” Theo said.
It was a lie. Theo hated to admit to his pest younger brother that he did have sweaty palms and a dry mouth, and that he slept only about three hours the night prior.
“Didn’t sleep much because you’re nervous?”
“No, didn’t sleep because I was watching the World Cup,” Theo answered.
“The former nation once known as Espana won again,” Ravi said. “Did you see that goal by Chimo Reyes?”
“Yeah, it was okay,” Theo said.
“Okay? Are you kidding?” It was the best GOAAALLLLL I’ve ever seen. Ever,” Ravi said.
“Whatever, it was just a game,” Theo said.
“Just don’t fall asleep in there,” Ravi said. “You wouldn’t want to break the last probe in the galaxy.”
“Maybe I’ll break you in two and send you back to Mars,” Theo said with a smile.
“You and what virt-sim Sayzani Warrior is going to do it?”
Theo pounded his fist into Ravi’s upper arm.
“Ah,” Ravi squealed in pain.
Sam laughed. “Hey, I’d like to go back to Mars. Seriously. There’s this hotness I’ve nicknamed Curvy Swervington and man does she have some curves and swerves and moaning ability. Total sweetness, oh yeah. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you, mutant?”
Sam was looking at Ravi who forced a quick half smile.
“Of course I do,” Ravi said.
“Maybe one day you just might know what a girl is. They’re the one’s with the long hair and the breasts and I’m not talking some sim-program.”
“Whatever, Mr. Sam, one day,” Ravi said, “maybe you’ll understand that we’re on a mission here to more fully understand the mysteries and complexities and eternal truths of the universe and we’re doing it for the future of the human race and the advancement of scientific knowledge. Mankind’s most noble goal, as everyone knows, is the search for truth and understanding.”
“Get off the soapbox,” Sam said.
Theo glared at his brother, interrupting him, “You really are such a geek. You know that, right?”
“The meek shall inherit the Earth, but us geeks get the stars,” Ravi replied.
“Are you getting enough oxygen?” Theo asked Ravi.
“You guys can sling your insults all day and all night, but they do nothing to harm me,” Ravi said as he proudly thrust out his thin chest.
“Oh really?”
“Yeah, I have protection,” Ravi said as he tapped his chest with the palm of his hand.
“Please, mutant, you only need protection from your geeky self,” Sam said.
“Actually, I put on an invisible coat of mental body armor every morning. And it repels anything you can sling at me,” Ravi said.
Theo and Sam both laughed.
“He’s definitely oxygen deprived,” Sam said.
“I’m fine,” Ravi said as he breathed in and out as if to prove he was alive.
“Fine? Mutant, you’re not fine,” Sam said. “You’ve got more than a few screws loose.”
“Whatever Mr. Sam. Whatever. What we really should be talking about is the most awesome DP ever created – the Wet Willy,” Ravi said. “Man, Wet Willy is a piece of the finest Furman full duty hardware ever created. Flexible. Nimble. Responsive.”
“The probe’s not a toy,” Theo said.
“I know that. He’s a robotic drone probe model 8 version 2.0,” Ravi said, “the Furman Corporation’s very best, built with the latest atmospheric modulator, thirty-six motion sensors and all eight terrain wheels designed to --”
“Just be quiet in there. Okay?”
“Sure. Sure.”
“Promise,” Theo requested with a stern eye.
“I promise I’ll be as quiet as a mechanical rat. Squawk-a, squawk-a,” Ravi said while pinching his thumb to his index finger in a repetitive motion.
As the days of this mission had dragged on and on, Theo found it more and more likely that he would eventually throw his brother overboard into the black abyss of the nearest asteroid belt, or more likely some black hole that would suck him in to some gravitational void.
At the probe room door, Theo swiped a key card.
The open area was a square room no bigger than a typical earthbound classroom. Ravi and Sam followed him in.
As they approached a long panel of computer screens, they heard a cheerful and familiar voice broadcasting from the largest screen. This was Doctor Leo Starling, their father. He had salt and pepper brown hair and his temples were gray as was his beard of salt and pepper stubble. He was back at the Ark, seated with his left leg in a space cast.
“Hello guys. Getting along without me?”
“Hi Dad.”
“Hey Dad,” Ravi yelled, “did I tell you about yesterday? We totally dominated Sam and Larson Jensen in virtual doubles tennis,” Ravi said with a quick glance to Sam, “isn’t that right Mr. Sam?”
Sam swung his left arm in a tennis motion and said, “Yeah, because I was playing with my left hand and I’m a righty!”
“A likely story,” Ravi said.
Doctor Starling nodded in Sam’s direction, “Hello Sam.”
“Hello sir. How’s life?” Sam asked with a quick smile at the computer console image of Doctor Starling.
“Just fine, Sam
. Just fine. Are you taking good care of my sons?”
“Yes sir,” Sam answered.
Doctor Starling, on screen, looked to Theo. “And how’s the man of the hour?”
“Ready, willing and able,” Theo said.
“And nervous,” Ravi added.
“It’s okay. Nerves are normal,” Doctor Starling said.
“I’m not nervous,” Theo said.
“Just remember to focus and breathe. Okay?”
“Okay, okay. I can handle this without all of your tips and advice,” Theo barked.
There was silence from Doctor Starling as Theo let out a huge, stressful sigh. Even though his father was just an image on a computer screen, it felt like Doctor Starling was right beside him.
The Starling family was akin to the first family of space exploration. All three had the same thin noses and the same crooked smiles but Ravi’s skin was a shade of mocha, since his mother was from India and Theo’s was not.
“So, how’s Mom?” Ravi asked.
“You can ask her yourself,” Doctor Starling said as he smiled and looked up at a luminous woman popped her head into the screen as she said, “I’m taking care of a very difficult patient, but I think we’ll both survive.”
This was Indira Starling. Most everyone agreed she was a complete knockout. She had long black hair, even longer legs and honey brown skin. She was nearly half Doctor Starling’s age. Doctor Starling liked to tell everyone she was an Indian national high-jump champion back on Earth, as if that skill ever helped up in space.
“Good to see you, Theo,” Mrs. Starling said.
“Glad you could make it, Indira,” Theo said.
Ravi shot Theo a surprising glance. While they shared many things – a love of tennis, rock climbing, and playing Sayzani Samurai, the sickest mixed martial arts virt-game ever created – they did not share the same mother. Theo let just about everyone know this fact whenever he got a chance.
“Now, lets remember not to slouch,” Doctor Starling said with a nod toward Theo.
“I won’t,” Theo said bluntly.
“Proper posture maximizes your touch,” Doctor Starling said.
“I know,” Theo said.
“And you’ll do just fine if you remember to breathe,” Doctor Starling said.
“Please Dad. I know what I’m doing here. I’m a trained professional.”
“Who do you think trained you?” Doctor Starling asked Theo with a raised eye brow.
Their bickering was interrupted by a booming, “How y’all doin’?” It was Tex Furman, founder and balding benefactor of this whole enterprise. He was a compact, though very loud Texan.
“Hello Mr. Furman, sir.”
“You ready for some D-P action?”
“Yes sir,” Theo answered.
It was an honor, a nerve-wracking honor to have Tex Furman observing and grading his performance. He had pioneered deep space travel in the twenty second century.
A three-member panel of elder statesman from the Furman Corporation would decide Theo’s fate. Doctor Starling was just a non-voting observer in the proceedings. The other members of the panel were Yuri and Marisa Makarov, the designer/engineers of the probe. All three elder statesman, in addition to Doctor Starling, were now visible on screen.
“So Theo Starling, let me conclude by saying this: there is nothing better for a young man to be happy in his work. So enjoy the task and just don’t break the hardware,” Tex Furman added without a trace of a laugh.
“Whenever you’re ready,” Yuri added, “please begin.”
Theo expected the Final Exam to be a golden brown cakewalk, just a formality to get his D-P-C (Drone Probe Control) license and certainly a promotion.
Theo sat down in front of a computer screen with a joystick controller.
That a probe of any size had successfully landed on GidX7 was a notable achievement. Only 4 out of 10 probes previously had safely landed on this planet.
Wet Willy’s current resting place was a crater near the highest mountain on the planet. It was evaluated as a dormant volcano, at least that’s what planetary geologist Ms. Esparanza had written in her latest white paper magnus opus, which few crewmembers had actually read but all had heard about. It was the sole reason they had headed to this area of the galaxy and parked themselves so close to GidX7. The white paper was called “The Fertility and Possibilities of Future Life on GidX7.”
Theo’s father had nicknamed the probe Wet Willy, since the hardware had tremendous ability in slick conditions.
To the best of anyone’s knowledge, there was no water on GidX7, at least none that had been found on the surface. Under the surface offered more tantalizing possibilities.
Theo went through a mental checklist: keep Wet Willy moving slow and steady. It’s not a race to the moons of Titan. Clear all distractions from your mind, like no daydreaming about rock climbing or playing Sayzani Warrior. Theo realized his palms were sweating. It was hard not being nervous. His good hand was on a thin control joystick. His left hand was slightly crippled from a youthful, foolish injury. His pinkie and ring finger were half of their former self and permanently curled into a crooked “c.”
As the Wet Willy probe rolled over a series of dry and bumpy humps of terrain, Doctor Starling said, “Slow down, son. Slow down. This isn’t a videogame on your virt-sim.”
Theo had slightly hunched shoulders, which rose in frustration whenever his father critiqued his technique.
“I know,” Theo said.
“Good. Then slow down and focus,” Doctor Starling added.
Theo slowed the probe down to a careful crawl, tightening his face with each creeping movement of the drone probe. He hated going so slow, hated it with a passion. If we’re going to explore, he thought, let’s really explore. Practically everyone aboard Odyssey, at least compared to Theo, was so careful and concerned with protocol and procedures. It wasn’t even part of the mission plan to land human beings down on the planet. Not yet. That prize would be for a second or perhaps even a third shuttle mission. It was also a strong possibility that human beings would never set foot on the golden brown surface of GidX7. It all depended if they even found anything worth pursuing further. To date nothing compelling had been found.
On the computer screen, Theo saw rocks and sand as he moved the joystick. With each movement he made, down on the planet, the probe slowly rolled to a collection of large sandstone like rocks.
The images on the screen were fairly clear. The planet’s atmospheric disturbances, torrid windstorms and electro-magnetic swirls of dust and gas mostly had calmed to a navigable swirl. It was the planets early morning that was the most peaceful. Daytime was almost the opposite. It was filled with dust storms that often approached dirt devil category. Everyone thought the place looked like some kind of primitive beach, without any oceans.
When the probe reached a flat stretch, Theo noticed a unique reading on his screen. He paused the drone probe on a slight downward hill.
Flashing on the computer screen were two words in bold red:
UNIDENTIFED SUBSTANCE
The two words kept flashing and flashing. Subtlety was not a trait Tex Furman enjoyed, nor supported. Say it loud. Say it proud and in Texan! And do it in red was actually one of his personal mottos.
Next, Theo instructed the probe’s robotic arm to switch its utility silver claw to finer setting. Sprouting out of the claws three prongs were wisps of a fine brush.
“Enlarging image and now magnifying,” Theo said, “It’s does not appear to be soil based. It’s under the surface. Taking dimensions now.”
Theo switched to a secondary chemical composition sensor. Within two seconds, he saw another amazing two words flashing, also in red:
CALCIUM PHOSPHATE
“We’ll be taking over from here,” Yuri Makarov said.
“Eight and one third inches long,” Theo said as if he didn’t hear Yuri’s interruption.
“We’ve got it from here. You’ve done a great j
ob,” Doctor Starling added.
Theo was defensive. “But this is my dig.”
“Initiating override 6-2-2,” Yuri said. “Wet Willy is under my control now.”
Theo cringed.
“But this is my dig, my Final Exam and I’ve found something very interesting,” Theo protested.
“And unidentified objects are extremely rare,” Ravi said. “In fact, Wet Willy can read and distinguish from over 5000 natural elements, minerals and natural gases with nearly a hundred percent accuracy. 94 elements on earth. 3800 minerals. All of the assorted gases.”
“Especially hot air,” Sam added.
Back at the Ark, across the galaxy, Yuri switched the protocol instructions he took control of the probe. Wet Willy’s robotic arm moved with precision in the sandy soil on the surface nine hundred miles below.
Once three big scoops of soil were cleared away from the area, the unidentified calcium phosphorous object became more visible. There were five distinct, though similar objects.
And then Ravi said what everyone was thinking, “That sure looks like a bunch of bones. Doesn’t it? Right Dad? I count five of them.”
“It’s really too early to say what they are,” Doctor Starling said with an optimistic rise to his voice.
Theo heard the unrestrained excitement in his father’s voice.
Doctor Starling had been everywhere, seen everything and hardly ever sounded surprised. He had taught every astronaut in the Furman Corporation’s stable of geniuses about argon-nuclear fission engines and about a hundred other topics that mostly put Theo to sleep.
“No exaggeration, but this could the greatest discovery in space travel,” Ravi said.
“Let’s not rush to judgment,” Doctor Starling said.
“But Dad, bones have never been found on a planet. As in nowhere, not even on Mars or the Moon or Titan or that hunk of carbon meteorite near Andorra,” Ravi said. “And let’s not go into the lack of any kind of alien life anywhere. Our journey has been nothing but false hopes and what might have beens. Right?”
“That’s enough chatter,” Doctor Starling said.
“But Dad, if those are a bunch of bones down there,” Ravi began to ask, “then that most likely means that something lives down on GidX7. Am I right or am I right?”
Odyssey Rising Page 2