Tales of the Vuduri_Year Five

by Michael Brachman

  “How would you do that?” Rome asked tentatively.

  Tomorrow, we will find out.

  Entry 5-258: September 15, 2017

  Ray’s Space Walk – Part 2 of 10

  Five years before the events that were described in Rome’s Evolution, Rei and Rome had left the Tabit system and were just starting out on their one-year trip to Deucado. At the time, they didn't know it would only take a year, they were planning on more like two-plus years. However, Rei had a burst of inspiration that allowed them to ultimately double their speed. This is a little vignette about Rei's spacewalk which facilitated a vastly shortened journey. This is part 2 of 10:

  “There’s a magneto,” Rei answered. He saw Rome’s confusion with the term. “It’s a charging device,” he said, “built into each section. There’s a permanent magnet and you just crank it around and it charges up a capacitor. When there’s enough charge, you let it loose and the chemicals explode.”

  “You are going to make an explosion?” Rome asked. Now she was genuinely worried.

  “No, no, no, nothing like that,” Rei said. “It’s more like a strip that sizzles. When it’s done, the sections separate.”

  “I would like to remind you that your ship is almost 1400 years old. Do you really believe that the thermite reaction would still be viable after such a long period of time?” MINIMCOM asked.

  “Yeah,” Rei said. “In theory, it would work after 10,000 years. As long as the permanent magnet and magneto can crank up a charge.”

  “Rei, this worries me,” Rome said, her breath catching.

  “It’ll be OK,” Rei said. “We have everything we need. Come on, Rome. It means we could get to Deucado in… how long, MINIMCOM?”

  “It should reduce our travel time to well under one year,” replied the autopilot computer installed on the other tug.

  “Rome, it’s worth it, don’t you think?” Rei asked plaintively.

  “I do not know,” Rome said. “Space-walks are inherently dangerous.”

  “There’s nothing to it,” Rei said. “I just go out, crank a handle, press a button and I come back.”

  Rome lowered her head and looked at Rei through the top part of her eyes. Her very demeanor shouted skepticism but her words undermined it.

  “If it will save us that much time, then I agree it is worth it,” she said hesitantly. “Very well.”

  “Great,” Rei said. He unbuckled the high-g harness and jumped up. “Come on and get me ready.”

  “What do you mean get you ready?” Rome asked as she unbuckled. “I am coming with you,” she said as she stood up.

  “No,” Rei said. “You can’t. You have to stay onboard the ship.”

  “Why?” Rome asked, fear seeping into her voice again.

  “Because,” Rei said. “We can’t both be in space at the same time. If something happens to me…”

  “What!” Rome exclaimed. “What are you saying?”

  “Nothing,” Rei said, trying to defuse the steadily growing tension. “It’s just that we don’t need to endanger…” As soon as he said the word, he knew it was a mistake. Rome leaped over at him and grabbed him around the neck.

  Uh-oh. Rei put his foot in his mouth big time. How will he get back on track? Tomorrow.

  Entry 5-259: September 16, 2017

  Ray’s Space Walk – Part 3 of 10

  Five years before the events that were described in Rome’s Evolution, Rei and Rome had left the Tabit system and were just starting out on their one-year trip to Deucado. At the time, they didn't know it would only take a year, they were planning on more like two-plus years. However, Rei had a burst of inspiration that allowed them to ultimately double their speed. This is a little vignette about Rei's spacewalk which facilitated a vastly shortened journey. This is part 3 of 10:

  “If there is any danger to you, then I cannot allow it,” she said. “I do not know what I would do if anything happened to you.”

  “Nothing’s going to happen to me,” Rei said, sliding his arms around her waist. “It’ll be fine.”

  “Then if it will be fine, I am going with you.”

  Rei looked down at her. As always, he got lost in her dark, glowing eyes. He loved this woman so much, beyond anything he ever dreamed was possible. He knew he could never win an argument about the trade off so he decided to try and bully his way past.

  “Let’s not fight about this,” Rei said. “It has to be this way. Just help me get ready.”

  Rome did not answer. In fact, she said nothing the entire time they walked back to the austere anteroom outside the mid-ship airlock. Rei reached into his locker and removed his pressure suit, climbing into it, all the while aware that Rome was standing there, arms folded across her chest. For this short walk, he didn’t bother with the plumbing and he dressed fairly quickly. He was smoothing the sleeves and adjusting the gloves of his white pressure suit when he took a chance and looked up at his woman and saw her scowling at him.

  “What?” he asked.

  “You know what,” Rome replied sternly, sadness radiating from her Vuduri eyes.

  “Nothing is going to happen, I promise,” Rei said. “I’m just going to go out and turn the crank. I’ll be back in a jiffy. Plus I’ll be tethered the whole time.”

  “So if nothing is going to happen to you, why am I not allowed to go with you?” Rome said. “Why do you have to go alone?”

  “I just went over this with you,” Rei said. He walked over to her and placed his gloved hand under her chin, tilting her head up so she looked him in the eyes. “I’m the only one who can do this and if something happens to me, you have to fly the ship to Deucado.”

  Rome pulled his hand away from her chin. “You cannot have it both ways,” she said angrily. “Either you will be safe and I can come with you or there is a chance you will not be safe and I need to be there for you.”

  “Rome, I can’t endanger you,” Rei said.

  “Danger, there is that word again,” Rome said in a huff. She pushed Rei aside and walked over to her locker. “I am going with you. That is all there is to it,” she said. She opened her locker and started to remove her pressure suit mounted there.

  Rei came over to her and put his hands on her hips. He turned her around in place. Tears were streaming down from her eyes.

  “Romey, listen to me,” he said gently. “If I cut the propulsion section loose, MINIMCOM says we can go faster by 20%. That means 20% less time in space and 20% less chance of anything happening to us in space. That’s worth the risk of taking a simple spacewalk and turning a crank.”

  The risk/reward seems pretty heavily balanced toward reward. Tomorrow, we will find out if Rome relents.

  Entry 5-260: September 17, 2017

  Ray’s Space Walk – Part 4 of 10

  Five years before the events that were described in Rome’s Evolution, Rei and Rome had left the Tabit system and were just starting out on their one-year trip to Deucado. At the time, they didn't know it would only take a year, they were planning on more like two-plus years. However, Rei had a burst of inspiration that allowed them to ultimately double their speed. This is a little vignette about Rei's spacewalk which facilitated a vastly shortened journey. This is part 4 of 10:

  “There is no risk worth me losing you,” she said, softly. “Rei, I do not think you understand. We are one. So you are mine now. I cannot describe it any other way.”

  “And you are mine,” he said. He kissed her gently but then suddenly, he cut the kiss short.

  “I know,” he said, “I’ll compromise with you.”

  “What?” Rome asked hopefully.

  “You get in your pressure suit but you stay in the airlock. You don’t come out. If you need to know what’s going on, you tug on the tether whenever you want. You can do it every 30 seconds if you need to. You tug once and that means ‘are you ok?’ I’ll tug back twice. That means ‘I’m fine.’ If I miss even one tug, you can come after me. But if I don’t, I want you to promise me you will stay
here, inside the airlock.”

  Rome’s mouth turned upwards into a smile even as the tears continued to flow. “That is very fair,” she said. “I agree to your proposal.”

  After Rome was dressed but before they put on their helmets, she said, “Wait.”

  “Wait what?” Rei answered.

  “If you have a problem, if you need me, you tug on the tether three times. All right?”

  “Sure,” Rei said. “That’s a great idea. I think we have a system, huh?”

  “Yes, a system,” Rome said. She leaned forward to hug Rei as best as she could, given the bulk of the pressure suits.

  “Let’s get this show on the road,” Rei said.

  “You always say that,” Rome observed. “What does that mean? What show? What road?”

  “The Rei and Rome show, of course,” Rei answered. “And the road? I guess it’s the road of life.”

  “I see,” Rome said, even though she didn’t. She nodded and wiped away her tears. They put on their helmets and entered the airlock together. Rome clamped twin lights on the sides of Rei’s helmet and clipped a hammer and screwdriver to eyelets on the side of the suit. She attached the tether and tugged on it to make sure it was secure. Rei immediately tugged it twice. He could see Rome smile within her helmet.

  Rome leaned forward and pressed her helmet against his.

  “You be careful, Rei Bierak,” she said in a muffled voice. “You come back to me.”

  “Of course I will, sweetheart,” he said. “I love you, Rome. I could never leave you.”

  Rome pulled her helmet back and nodded. She mouthed the words, ‘I love you too, mau emir’ back to Rei. Rei turned to the airlock and pressed the stud to begin the depressurization cycle. When all the air was evacuated, the outer door opened and Rei was looking at interstellar space.

  Tomorrow, the adventure begins.

  Entry 5-261: September 18, 2017

  Ray’s Space Walk – Part 5 of 10

  Five years before the events that were described in Rome’s Evolution, Rei and Rome had left the Tabit system and were just starting out on their one-year trip to Deucado. At the time, they didn't know it would only take a year, they were planning on more like two-plus years. However, Rei had a burst of inspiration that allowed them to ultimately double their speed. This is a little vignette about Rei's spacewalk which facilitated a vastly shortened journey. This is part 5 of 10:

  Rome tapped Rei on the shoulder. He turned towards her and she clipped a ring around his wrist which was connected to a hand thruster. The thruster itself resembled a putty gun with a U-shaped set of nozzles on the business end. She placed the bulbous handle, complete with trigger, in his hand. Rei hefted it and nodded to her. He turned back in place, looking down to pick a landing spot. Taking a deep breath, Rei stepped onto the ledge just outside the door then pushed off and down so that he drifted toward the hull of his Ark. He only had to go about two meters. His magnetic boots clamped on and Rei tested their grip. They felt secure. He looked back up at Rome and gave her the thumbs up sign. She nodded and waved to him to get going.

  Rei kept one hand on the tether and made his way quickly toward the back of the crew compartment. Overall, the Ark itself was huge, nearly two football fields in length but Rei made good time. Rome only tugged on the tether once and Rei responded immediately with a double tug back. He figured she only tried it the one time because she could see him and she knew that he was OK.

  He stopped when he got to the rear of the crew section and ran his hand along the stubby vertical stabilizer which seemed no worse for wear given how old it was. The metal was dulled, probably from the continual abrasion of space dust but overall it looked solid. Rei turned back to Rome and pointed to his chest then waved his arm once in a large arc. He was trying to indicate to her that he had to jump over the lattice-work adjoining the two sections. Rome tugged the tether once in reply. Rei tugged back twice. He backed up a few steps, pulled in a large amount of slack then ran forward and jumped up into the air. His momentum carried him over the lattice-work and he sailed on for some time. The whole experience was actually sort of fun. Eventually, Rei fired the hand thruster and the reaction pushed him back to the hull of the cargo section where the magnetic boots clamped on again immediately. Rei nearly stumbled but was able to regain his balance.

  He stopped moving and carefully pulled in the remaining slack, waiting for Rome to tug. Right on cue, she queried him and he tugged twice back. As Rei moved onward toward the rear of the cargo section, there was more strain on the tether, almost as if Rome was reluctant to pay out the cable as fast as he needed. He pushed on as quickly as she would allow, knowing there was nothing he could do about it. When he got to the rear of the cargo module, he looked across at the remains of the propulsion section. The thin metal rods that were responsible for generating the “atom catcher” field were either broken or all twisted up. Rei assumed this was caused by the whole ship being spun about when they had their collision with whatever it was that hit them.

  Tomorrow, Rei tries to separate the sections. It is not as easy as you would imagine.

  Entry 5-262: September 19, 2017

  Ray’s Space Walk – Part 6 of 10

  Five years before the events that were described in Rome’s Evolution, Rei and Rome had left the Tabit system and were just starting out on their one-year trip to Deucado. At the time, they didn't know it would only take a year, they were planning on more like two-plus years. However, Rei had a burst of inspiration that allowed them to ultimately double their speed. This is a little vignette about Rei's spacewalk which facilitated a vastly shortened journey. This is part 6 of 10:

  The circumstances didn’t matter. The propulsion system was dead weight. The time had come to cut it loose. Rei searched the base of the cargo section’s rear stabilizer and spotted the release panel, outlined in red. He unclipped the screwdriver from its eyelet and clipped the tiny attached cable on its end back in place. It was a smart design so that if he dropped it, it would not float off.

  Rei bent over and pried open the panel which came loose and started drifting away in space. He didn’t need it so he let it go. His helmet lights illuminated the cavity where he saw a hand-crank, a charge meter and an ignition switch. He knelt down on both knees but as soon as he did, his magnetic boots broke their grip and he started drifting away from the ship feet first. A quick burst of the hand-thruster brought him back in contact with the Ark. Rome tugged to make sure he was OK and he double-tugged his assurance back.

  Learning from his mistake, Rei placed the sole of one boot right next to the panel and kneeled down on the other knee. He was able to reach the magneto crank easily and started turning it. He turned it about six times but the needle within the analog gauge did not move. That meant he had generated no charge. Rei thought about the mechanics. The crank turned some permanent magnets which passed around a twin set of coils. This created a flow of electricity which charged up a capacitor. The meter was just another coil which moved the delicate needle based upon the stored charge. It was basic physics.

  Rei cranked furiously for a minute, round and round, growing increasingly frustrated. The needle never budged. Rome tugged on the tether and Rei tugged back, perhaps a little too hard. Rome tugged again and this time he tugged back more gently so she would know he was truly all right.

  Rei scowled at the panel. It was the simplest design in the world. It was made to last hundreds and hundreds of years in the vacuum of space. As long as the permanent magnets retained their magnetism, and there was no reason why they wouldn’t, it should work. The only possible thing that it could be was… Rei laughed at himself. He gently tapped at the needle gauge with the handle of the screwdriver and the needle popped to the fully charged position instantly.

  “Stuck, duh,” Rei thought to himself. He used his thumb to depress the safety then pressed the ignition switch and stood up. A puff of smoke shot out of the rim of cargo section where the lattice-work attached. The smoke raced around t
he circumference of the ship until it was out of sight. Rei bent past the rear stabilizer and in a less than a minute, the circle of smoke came back around, ending where it began.

  Tomorrow, an idea strikes Rei regarding his music slab.

  Entry 5-263: September 20, 2017

  Ray’s Space Walk – Part 7 of 10

  Five years before the events that were described in Rome’s Evolution, Rei and Rome had left the Tabit system and were just starting out on their one-year trip to Deucado. At the time, they didn't know it would only take a year, they were planning on more like two-plus years. However, Rei had a burst of inspiration that allowed them to ultimately double their speed. This is a little vignette about Rei's spacewalk which facilitated a vastly shortened journey. This is part 7 of 10:

  In theory, the two sections were now separated. Unfortunately, Rei realized he had no way to test this without going back into the ship and ordering MINIMCOM to fire the thrusters. Vuduri pressure suits didn’t have radios, otherwise, he’d call it in. He took a deep breath to calm himself. If the two sections were not completely severed, they were no worse off but still, to have come this far and not know was disappointing.

  Rei had an idea but it would require Rome’s indulgence. He tugged once on the tether. Rome tugged back. He tugged twice. At this point, he was hoping she realized he wanted her attention. He gathered up a little bit of slack and stepped over onto the lattice-work, turning in place to face forward. The lattice-work was made primarily of composites so his magnetic boots did not grip very well. He had to fire the hand-thruster briefly to force his torso down. He grabbed a hold of the lattice and wedged the toes of his boots into two of the open spaces in the diamond-shaped pattern. With his free hand, he gripped the tether so he would know if Rome was testing him. With the other hand, he stuck the handle of the hand-thruster into an open space and pulled the trigger. He fired it continuously for about 15 seconds. He didn’t know how much reactant the thruster carried but he didn’t want to use up all the charge, just in case.