by LM. Preston
“Sure. What’s your name?” Aadi asked as he moved over.
“My name is Tacitus,” said the boy and put his tray on the table. Tacitus took everything off and neatly placed his tray under the table.
“Hi, Tacitus. Where are you from? My name is Raiko Lee, but you can just call me Raiko, and this is Eirena Collington,” Raiko said to Tacitus as he sat down.
“I am from Alaska,” he said and started methodically eating, lifting his fork in perfect timing and symmetry. Aadi wondered how this kid moved so perfectly. They all kind of stared at Tacitus for a moment with their mouths slightly open in awe.
Scott shook his head and mouthed to Aadi, “Weird.”
“Um, I am from Georgia,” Raiko said.
“Aadi, Damien, Dakota, and I live in the same neighborhood here in Florida. Raiko and I are roommates and just met on the trip,” said Eirena.
“Uh… and why are you girls sitting at our table? I don’t recall you being invited,” Damien said and slightly pushed at Eirena to move her over.
“Because you are on our team, and we wanted to meet you before Simulation Class,” Eirena said and elbowed him back.
“Well, you’ve met us, so leave,” said Damien. He stood up, turned to his left toward Eirena, leaned on the table, and put his nose within an inch of her face.
“Look, Damien, leave them alone. They aren’t hurting anything, and they are staying. You can go if you want, though,” Aadi said sternly. He stared at Damien in silent warning. Damien turned to him, and his frown got deeper, as his eyes glared at Aadi.
“What are you going to do about it if I make them leave, Aadi?” Damien asked, glaring at Aadi. He moved his hands to his plate and grabbed a spoonful of pudding.
“I’m going to stop you,” Aadi said, deepening his voice and leaning on the table toward Damien.
“I’d like to see you try,” Damien said. He picked up a spoonful of pudding and flung it at Aadi. Just as Aadi ducked, Eirena tripped Damien with her right foot. Damien fell slightly to his right, giving her leverage to reach him, and she wrapped her right arm firmly around his neck.
“Knock it off before I embarrass you by beating your face in!” she said directly into his ear. Scott, Aadi, Raiko, and Dakota burst out and doubled over in laughter. Tacitus just didn’t get the joke and stared at the scene, unaffected.
“Damien, I think Eirena can handle you and save me the trouble of beating your sorry behind,” Aadi laughed.
Damien pushed Eirena off of him. She slid onto the floor and caught herself in a crouch before she fell to her knees. “Kiss off!” he said, and then sharply pushed his tray aside as he got up and left the lunchroom.
“Don’t sweat him. He has a quick temper and a sour disposition all the time. It takes a long time to get used to it,” Aadi said and pushed his tray aside.
“Well, I don’t like him because he is a cad, and I know before camp is over, I am going to kick his butt or have to stop you from doing it,” Scott said with a laugh. They all finished up their lunches and headed to their rooms to change for Processing.
After Aadi arrived at his room, he realized all the boys were there getting showered and dressed. There was a holographic sign on the wall above Aadi’s desk to shower and report to Processing in the name order shown on the screen. Aadi noticed that his name was last on the list, so he went to the computer to play a quick videogame while the rest of the guys got dressed and left.
Aadi looked around and noticed that all the boys were gone. He walked over to his bed, took off his shirt, and bent down to pick it up.
“Ebu, you okay?” Aadi whispered.
“Ebu here, but I am bored. Can I come out?” Ebu begged, crawling slightly out of the backpack.
“No! I mean… I don’t know if it’s safe. I have to go to Processing, so stay in the backpack,” Aadi said sternly. He knew the reasoning chip he put in Ebu gave him way too much attitude and he hoped he convinced Ebu to stay put. Aadi continued to get undressed and went to shower. When he came out, Ebu was sitting on the bed. He quickly started to dress while talking to Ebu.
“Sorry… Ebu just had to get out. Don’t worry about me, though, I am in cloak mode so no one can see me on camera,” Ebu said.
“Look… please go back. I don’t have time for this,” Aadi whispered as he pulled his shirt over his head.
“Fine. I just needed a stretch,” Ebu said and collapsed into a small box form with extended legs and scurried to the floor and into the backpack.
“Whoosh,” Aadi let out a deep breath, slipped on his tennis shoes, and ran to Processing.
Chapter 3
“Welcome to Processing, Aadi,” greeted a lady with a lab coat on.
“My name is Dr. Hamilton, and I will be one of the physicians assigned to you,” she said. Looking around, he noticed the exam room had white and silver medical equipment in the back of the room. The room had a mini-computer on the desk and two rolling chairs in the far corner near the bed. It was a stark white room, just like in a movie he had seen about mentally insane people. There was white everywhere.
“Uh. hello,” Aadi answered while hesitantly standing just inside the door.
“Welcome. Come in, please. Today, I will do a complete physical that will include a body scan of all your bones and organs. I will take a blood test and give you an immunization for space travel. Are you comfortable with that?” she asked, as if he had a choice, and gave him a slight smile. She reminded him of his Aunt Kimberly - short, round, red-haired, and with big dimples.
“Sure. I am ready,” he said. She gestured for him to follow her. She gave him a typical physical that was similar to what he had each year with his doctor. Then, she placed him on a gel pad on the floor and went to her computer.
“Stay still. The body scan is about to take place,” she said and smiled at him. Then, a small silver ball came out of the wall behind her and flew over to where Aadi stood. The ball opened slightly, and a white light came out of it. The light started at the top of Aadi’s head and ended at his feet.
“You did great. Now, I will just take a blood sample and then give you your immunization,” she said while punching in a code on the wall. A small cabinet opened up.
“What’s in the immunization for? I mean, what exactly does it do?” Aadi asked curiously.
“Well, it stabilizes you from any foreign matter on the planet that we are visiting. It also gives you the ability to adapt to the planet’s environmental characteristics. For instance, if you go to a planet that does not have oxygen, then your body will adjust to breathing in that environment,” she said. Studying the object in front of her, she typed something in her computer and then turned toward him.
“Uh, I have never heard or read of NASA using this for their astronauts,” Aadi said.
“Well, NASA isn’t leading the space travel industry at this time… we are. We have tested this immunization for decades and use it on all of our astronauts. We are confident it works well, and it won’t hurt a bit,” she said as she came toward him with a syringe. The syringe had a flat head on top to extract blood and a round, tubular contraption to give the immunization.
“Now, please take a seat right here, and I will draw some blood from the tip of your finger,” she said when Aadi walked toward her. He sat in the chair facing her, and she put the flat tip of the needle on his fingertip. It tickled as the suction started and he saw his blood being collected in the tub she applied. He remembered his mom telling him that when she got blood extracted long ago as a child they used a needle. She took the tubular item from her top pocket, lifted up Aadi’s sleeve, and pressed it firmly against his upper arm.
“Ouch!” Aadi said. He wasn’t prepared for the sharp sting of the medicine injected.
“You are done, but you may feel a little lightheaded and sleepy for the next forty minutes. Go to your room and take a nap before your Simulation Class if you need to. Welcome to Space Explorer Camp!” she said and then turned to dismiss him.
Aad
i grabbed his shoes, put them on, and left Processing. He immediately felt tired and a little dizzy. He blinked his eyes and put a picture of his mom in his mind’s eye. Her face materialized.
“Hey, Mom, I just got this immunization. They say that it is given to all their astronauts. It’s supposed to make it easy for my body to adjust to any of the planets we visit. It’s making me feel sleepy and a little sick. Did it do this to you?” he asked. He immediately pictured his mom in her home office looking at her computer.
“Umm, that’s funny, honey. I don’t remember them giving me an immunization. Maybe they did that to you because you are so young. If you feel sick from it, take a nap. If that doesn’t make you feel better, tell your doctor. You all should be blasting off soon. Your dad and I are heading out there in about ten minutes to see you take off,” she said and smiled. Aadi blinked again. He was in front of his dorm room door.
“Okay, Mom, I am definitely taking a nap,” he replied. He blanked her out of his mind. Aadi entered the room and noticed the lights were out and everyone was sleeping. He thought that was odd, but he climbed in his bed and pulled down the covers. He placed his blanket over his head, and before he forgot, he kicked his shoes off and whispered to Ebu, “I am taking a short nap. Stay silent.” Then Aadi went to sleep.
Chapter 4
“Space Cadets, it is time for blast off! Report to Simulation Class now,” said the booming voice from the loudspeakers. Everyone in the room except for Tacitus was asleep. Tacitus was dressed and reading on the bed.
“Man, that physical wiped me out,” Aadi said. He climbed out of bed, put his shoes on, and headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Scott and Dakota where right behind him.
“You’re tellin’ me! Now I feel like someone just poured cold water on me. I feel much better now,” Scott said and then wiped his hand down his face.
“You look like someone poured water on your face,” Dakota said, laughing.
“Move!” Damien said and pushed his way to the bathroom. He bumped Aadi on his way. They all ignored him as he came in, which seemed to aggravate him further. He tossed his shoes around loudly. Aadi spied Scott watching Damien and shook his head in disgust. He didn’t blame Scott for feeling that way because he felt the same about Damien all the time.
“Space Cadets, thirty minutes till blast off. Report to the bridge for Simulation Class!” the loudspeaker boomed. Everyone quickly finished washing their faces, put on their shoes, and ran toward the Simulation Class. Aadi entered the bridge of the ship, which had stone-covered walls and a ceiling that looked out to the sky. He saw androids and pilots at different stations with hand controls and buttons that were spread around the room in a semi-circle.
Each group had a certain area to observe, and Aadi’s group was Area A21. He glanced around the room and noticed that Eirena and Raiko were already there. The room was large and shaped in an oval. There were flight pods for each team, spread in all directions throughout the flight room. The Captain of the ship was piloting from above them in a glass suspended flight room. After a cursory glance around the room, Aadi made his way over to the flight pod for his team.
“I can see you boys are going to be a problem. They called us ten minutes ago. What took you so long?” Eirena said with arms crossed as she tapped her foot, staring hard at Aadi for answers and explanations and alibis.
“We were dog tired after Processing. What about you?” Aadi asked and walked to the control center in their pod. “We took a little nap, but we set our clock for twenty minutes,” Raiko answered and poked Aadi’s arm. Aadi looked down at her and wondered again if she was their age. She didn’t look like most girls their age, what with her tiny frame and feisty, combative nature.
“Look, if you poke me again, I am going to poke you back,” he said to her and laughed lightly. She put her hands on her hips and smirked at him.
“Hello, Space Cadets. I am your trainer and mentor, Dr. Sam Faulkner. However, you may call me Mr. Faulkner during camp. We are ready to blast off, and while the Captain utilizes similar controls to blast off, we will run through a simulated series of blast-off methods. Raiko and Dakota, you go to the manual station. Damien and Tacitus, you go to the 4-D station, and Eirena, Aadi, and Scott, you come with me to the touch station where we will blast off via the touch-screen controls,” he said and walked to the middle console.
“Um, sir, can I go to the manual station?” Aadi asked.
“No, Aadi. Each of you have been tested to see what your favored way of operation is. Yours is manual, and therefore we want to teach you a new and alternate way to accomplish your goals. Although the touch screens may seem easy to you, they are not, as each command requires a certain number of codes and rhythm before being executed. Therefore, you will simulate the launch with us. Now, in further simulations, we will rotate you all, but not today,” Mr. Faulkner stated, looking directly at Aadi with a pleasant smile. Mr. Faulkner turned to the flat screen and stated loudly, “Cadets, read the screen above your controls and listen to the directions clearly before you execute. Place these directions in memory. Your lessons will move quickly and build upon one another.”
Within two minutes, a series of seven steps were requested to initiate the blast-off sequence, and the Captain’s steps could be viewed from the images around the room. Eirena, Aadi, and Scott took turns following the instructions, and the countdown began after they had received a “Blast-off Sequence Successful” message from the console.
“Three… two… one… blast off!” said the voice over the loudspeaker.
“Please take your seats, everyone. We are going into turbo mode,” the loudspeaker said. Then, the floor in back of each Cadet opened slightly, and a flattened chair appeared. The chair expanded into a full-size soft thin leather chair. Everyone took their seat and were locked into place.
Aadi was amazed that he didn’t feel the pressure of the launch like he did when he reached a certain altitude when flying in airplanes. He felt nothing strange except for a tickling sensation in his stomach. His seat was next to Eirena’s. She closed her eyes and reached over and squeezed his arm. He jumped a little but turned to his left to see her eyes squeezed shut and her fingers shaking slightly. He looked out of the window to see colors of light blue, white, and gray pass by. Before he could blink, he saw a black, starlit sky in a blur. After what seemed like forever, the craft started to level out, and Eirena quickly removed her hand from his arm.
Aadi looked at her. She squinted her eyes and made a mean face. Then, she stuck her tongue out at him. He smiled and then turned back to the window to look upon millions of stars. He was in awe.
“Maybe this ain’t so bad,” he said.
Movement started around the room as kids came out of the daze of the launch and the loudspeaker boomed, “Cadets, you make unbuckle your seatbelts and take your stations.”
Chapter 5
Aadi and his team took their prior stations. They were instructed by their screens how to continue the flight simulations.
“Cadets you are to place these directions to your memory since this lesson will not be offered in our next session,” the voice on the loudspeaker said. They had to complete a test at the end of the simulation. He zipped through the test in less than half the time that the other Cadets did and started to look over Eirena’s shoulder to pass the time.
“Uh… excuse me, my name is Carter. I wonder if I can join your group since I am ditching mine?” this tall, lanky kid with bright orange hair and lots of freckles asked Eirena. Eirena looked at him, said nothing, and turned back to her controls. Aadi figured they had a new team member because Eirena was all bluff.
“What makes you so sure that we can use you on our team? I mean, I already have my share of hotheads, and know-it-alls to deal with. Why would I want one more?” Eirena asked Carter with a side-glance while she worked the controls. Her long, slim fingers moved quickly and fluidly over each numbering sequence, simulating turning on course.
“Well, I have be
en in space before, to the moon and back with my parents on vacation, and I know what to expect when we are in flight. Umm, also, I am a great space navigator and spent a lot of time charting our course for this camp with my dad, who is one of the Camp Directors. So, I guess you could say that I have connections,” Carter said with a slight grin and walked closer to Eirena.
“Hmm, well, I guess you do have your usefulness. So, you can get us on a sneak tour around the facilities?” Eirena asked, slyly glancing over at Carter.
“You bet I can. I can do that and more if you let me on your team,” Carter said and rubbed his fingers together like a kid waiting for candy.
“Well, you will have to tell our Counselor, Mr. Faulkner, that you are our new member. If he approves you, then we will let you in,” Eirena said.
“Hold on a friggin minute! Who do you think you are, inviting some carrot-top butt kisser to our team?” complained Damien, staring daggers at Eirena.
“I am the Team Leader, that’s who I am! So back off!” Eirena yelled back, never letting her eyes leave her controls.
“Who the heck died and made you the head honcho? Ain’t no way a wannabe jock girl is going to tell me what to do!” Damien said and left his controls. He stormed angrily toward Eirena.
“Hold on a minute, hothead, and watch your language boy,” Mr. Faulkner said and stepped in front of Damien.
“What?” said Damien. He squinted his brown eyebrows and combed his hands through his dark auburn hair. Then, he angrily placed his hands on his hips.
“Go back to your station, Cadet,” Mr. Faulkner said to Damien and pointed in the direction of his control center.
“Hmph,” Damien growled with a glare at Carter. He made a fist, held it up to his eyes, and pointed to Carter and then Aadi before he returned to his station.
“Now, Carter, why don’t you want to stay with your original team?” Mr. Faulkner asked and crossed his arms in front of his chest.