by Peter Wood
‘Will it take long to learn how to fly it?’
‘I’m already good with the simulator, but as soon as I get into it I’ll have a concentrated three or four weeks to really get to know everything. After that it will be extended courses to learn some basics about the picofactory and the food factory.’
‘Two more days. That’s not long. You’ll hardly notice the wait.’
‘Ha! Very funny!’
***
‘Why?’
Wirrin could hardly believe what he was hearing. Calen had just announced that Sonic was asking for sharks to be introduced to the reaches.
‘He says our dolphins need more challenges in their lives.’
‘They can have lots of challenges without needing sharks. Baby dolphins will get killed and the pods will be hurt when they try to protect them.’
‘They won’t be in the home reaches. They’ll have special reaches of their own and young dolphins will have encounters when their pods think they’re ready. Sonic says it was an important milestone in his life when he faced the tiger sharks at Monkey Mia, and habitat dolphins are missing out.’
‘What? All of them or just the enhanced dolphins? The others have had sharks all their lives.’
‘I think he means all of them. Shark reaches will take quite a while to develop and there will be hundreds of young dolphins in a few years’ time.’
‘What does he mean by an encounter?’
‘Young ones will go with a group, and older dolphins will go whenever they feel like it.’
‘By themselves? That’ll be really dangerous when the sharks get bigger. Will they be tiger sharks?’
‘Mostly, but the dolphins from Earth will be matched with whatever species they’ve had most experience with. Male dolphins like exploring and they often go off with their bond mates.’
That was true. Enhanced male dolphins spent a good deal of time separated from the pods and wild male dolphins even more.
‘What will you do if Sonic goes near them?’
‘I’ll have to stay on the skimmer. I wouldn’t have a hope in the water if one came after me.’
‘How dangerous will it be for Sonic?’
‘A single shark wouldn’t have a hope of even getting close to him but if there’s a group they might.’
‘What does Yajala say? Does he think it’s a good idea?’
‘He’s set things in motion so he must have agreed to it.’
‘He mightn’t have had a choice, Calen. When Sonic says he wants something he always gets it.’
‘No he doesn’t. He’s not even allowed to leave Warrakan unless the Comet and two AIs can go with him.’
‘That’s not a problem. The Comet’s always there.’
‘It’s going to make it harder for Yajala to look after the dolphins but he’ll work it out. I bet he’ll have extra emergency bots or something like that and if a dolphin gets mauled they’ll be looking after it in seconds.’
‘Emergency bots? Can they go underwater?’
Wirrin did a quick scan. ‘Most of them can’t but the ones for the reaches are designed so they can.’
‘Instead of having real sharks they could make virtual reality centres. Then they could have encounters without any danger.’
‘That’s no good. Holos don’t work underwater.’
‘They could have holo water instead of real water. The dolphins wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.’
‘Thom, that’s crazy. You couldn’t take dolphins out of the water long enough for something like that.’
‘Yes you could. You could make a special suit or some kind of apparatus to keep them wet.’
‘A suit? I don’t think they could stand being enclosed like that.’
It was an interesting thought of Thom’s and the ideas went back and forth for a while.
***
‘Will our great pilot relinquish control to a humble dolphin?’
‘Humble? When a humble dolphin turns up I might. Cheeky dolphins haven’t got a hope.’
Sonic gave a chirp of thanks and moved to examine his console and InfoSystem controls. It wouldn’t be now because there was no chance anyone else would fly Thom’s ship before he did. Thom’s excitement was contagious and Wirrin and Calen were delighted that they were here to share it with him on an activity day.
‘Where are we going, Thom?’
‘Nowhere till I’ve done all my checks and we get settled in. I have to make a special link with the Comet so it can stay close to us.’ That was necessary for Sonic’s security. ‘But we’ve got all day so I’m taking you to an asteroid aggregate I found. It should be interesting.’
‘I’ve never heard of asteroid aggregates.’
‘This one has five big asteroids and lots of smaller ones lumped together and exploring them will be an adventure.’
‘That’s very unusual.’
‘It’s weird, but that’s how they show up on the scan. Calen, I’ve set up a training module so you can learn how to use the visuals properly while Wirrin and Sonic activate their InfoSystems.’
Wirrin grinned. Thom was getting them all organised. Twenty minutes later he was very impressed. The InfoSystem didn’t have the huge database of the Comet or the habitats but this close it could access them almost instantaneously anyway, otherwise it was identical to his home system and the one on the Comet.
‘Let’s go!’
Wirrin, Calen and Sonic looked at Thom, delight radiating from his face. This was a moment he’d been dreaming about.
‘Calen, see if you can keep Warrakan centred on the display. This is going to be really something.’
Wirrin turned from his InfoSystem to watch the big screen with the image of Warrakan’s exterior. This was the best way to see what was happening.
Yes! They were moving! Warrakan started to recede slowly and Attunga and Freedom came into view. Suddenly a giant force slammed Wirrin against his chair and the habitats shrank in size faster than he ever remembered on the Comet. The force eased and Wirrin turned to Thom.
‘What was that for?’
‘I had to go slowly while we were close to Warrakan but then I let 3G through the compensators so we’d remember it. That’s the fastest we’ve ever left the habitats and I’m holding on 15G. We’ll jump to 19G next and stay there for most of the trip. Can you get the Comet on display?’
‘No wonder I felt squished flat. You should have warned us.’
‘No way! There’s nothing like a good surprise.’
Calen’s training with the visuals worked well because after a couple of seconds an enhanced image came into view. Wirrin’s adrenaline levels settled and he turned to check how Sonic had been affected. Surprisingly he was using his InfoSystem as if nothing had happened.
Thom laughed. ‘His pool has its own compensators and he didn’t feel any extra push. 3G would slosh all the water out and leave him stranded on the floor if it didn’t.’
Wirrin linked to see what Sonic was so preoccupied with. Aha! He was going through the ship’s controls. Thom would definitely have to let him take over at some stage.
‘How long does it take to reach these asteroids?’
‘It’s over two million kilometres so it’ll be a couple of hours.’
‘What are we going to do for all that time?’
Thom just laughed at this attempt to stir him. ‘Jump in the pool with the fish, Calen. He might teach you how to swim.’
The two hours passed so quickly Wirrin could hardly believe it. He ended up having InfoSystem competitions with Sonic and that was always a brain-straining time eater. Calen couldn’t follow so he went back to playing with the ship visuals and then researching the asteroid aggregate. Thom spent the time practising with his different ship systems.
‘Hey look! It’s weird. The database info doesn’t show the same as this.’
They were still hundreds of kilometres away but Calen had an image of their destination centred on the big display. His time spent learning the
visuals had really paid off. At the moment the image was enhanced and rather fuzzy but that would rapidly improve. Wirrin gawked.
‘How big are those asteroids?’
‘The five main ones range from 17 kilometres to 73 kilometres and the small ones are all different sizes with a median of 2.7 kilometres.’
‘I can only see four big sections?’
‘I said it was weird.’
Thom nodded distractedly as he applied himself to controlling the final approach. With every passing second the image on the screen sharpened as the scanners added more accurate detail, and everyone stared at the jumble of rock and ore. Thom brought the ship to a halt and in an insert window of his InfoSystem screen Wirrin saw the Comet slipping into a standby position nearby. This aggregate was massive.
At 73 kilometres the biggest section was half as long again as Warrakan, and from what Wirrin could see, at least twice as wide. The main display suddenly zoomed as Calen focused on a dark transverse feature.
‘Look at that! I think the giant piece is really two. There are gaps all the way along.’
The air shimmered and Comet-Turaku appeared.
‘Quite extraordinary, Thom. This is now the most unusual aggregate formation in our records. I’ve analysed our close-range 3D scans and Calen is correct in his observation. Through some process, still to be determined, all five sections have become cemented at innumerable contact points into one loosely stable entity. The great fissure Calen is now focused on is really the interface between the two largest asteroids, and our preliminary 3D images show many dramatic internal features. Thom, if you move 30 kilometres laterally to the coordinates I am providing you’ll have a unique vantage point.’
When the ship came to a halt again Wirrin wondered what the big deal was till Calen pointed out a star.
‘Wombats! You can see right through. How long is that gap, Wirrin?’
Wirrin accessed the dimensions with his InfoSystem. ‘It’s 34.7 kilometres from one end to the other.’
‘And how wide?’
That was Thom and something in his voice sounded an alert in Wirrin’s mind.
‘It varies, but the narrowest section is … 68 metres. Thom, don’t even think of it.’
‘Why not? There’s tons of room.’
‘Think of what?’ Calen had noticed Wirrin’s caution.
‘Thom is an avid explorer with an exciting idea.’
‘He wants to go through that gap.’
Calen’s eyes widened, his jaw dropped, and then his whole face lit up.
‘Wow! Unreal! Like the canyons on Miranda, only better.’
So much for common sense. Sonic and Calen were both taken with this crazy idea.
‘It’s too dangerous – 35 kilometres with only a few metres of clearance? What if there’s movement and we get crushed?’
‘It’s only rock and ore, Wirrin. Our hull is way stronger.’
That was true.
‘Well, we could get stuck.’
Thom thought that over for less than two seconds. ‘Impossible. The Comet would drill us out with its multi-spectrum beams … Or I could even do it with our own.’
‘Turaku, tell them it’s too risky. We can’t take Sonic into a situation like that.’
Comet-Turaku reappeared. ‘Your caution is commendable, Wirrin, but we calculate the risk to be minimal and far outweighed by the value of the projected experience. Thom has completed far more difficult navigational tasks with great competence and relative ease. He is correct about the hull strength and our capabilities in the unlikely event of any entrapment.’
Calen and Sonic anticipated Thom’s exuberant outburst and chorused along with him, ‘Let’s go!’
The AIs were giving the go-ahead and even encouraging it. This was going to be interesting.
‘Thom, keep a full link to the Comet with your controls and close-range scanners. They will provide a level of detail and information unavailable from our external position.’
Thom laughed and fiddled with the controls. ‘Yes, and make certain you can take over if I do anything wrong.’
‘Of course.’
The ship started moving and Wirrin’s heart thumped as he stared at the jagged walls of the approaching fissure. For the first ten minutes awed silence reigned as the ship edged deeper and deeper into the great rift. Calen, handling the big display screen, mainly kept a forward view, with an occasional pan to some lumpy formation or significant recess in the walls. No-one was claustrophobic but the sense of enclosure by the massive asteroids was a powerful first for all of them.
‘The first narrow bit’s coming up in approximately 2 kilometres. Do you think we’ll get through?’
Wirrin had to smile. Trust Thom to be the first to break the mood. ‘Probably not. I think Sonic should take over in case.’
‘Ha! Very funny, Wirrin. He gets his turn on the way home … Maybe!’
Sonic didn’t give the expected comeback. ‘Thom is the best driver for this situation. I am feeling overwhelmed.’
What? Calen rushed from his console and launched himself into the pool for physical contact and a rapid exchange of dolphin speech. Eventually he climbed from the pool and addressed the anxious onlookers. Turaku was back, and Thom had brought the ship to an emergency halt.
‘Everything’s okay. He’s overwhelmed in a good way. He’s never experienced anything like this and it’s more exciting to him than it is to us.’
‘We don’t have to keep going.’
‘Thom, I expressed my feelings without consideration. Please continue with this wonderful adventure.’
A trill of sound echoed through the control room and everyone relaxed and smiled at the dolphin equivalent of an excited yell. ‘Let’s go!’
Turaku disappeared, and with Calen back at the visual controls, they set off again.
Talking later about Sonic’s reaction the trio realised just how limited his experiences were compared to their own. All their life they’d had myriad journeys, visiting real and fantastical worlds with the simulators and virtual reality machines, which were denied to dolphins because they didn’t work underwater.
‘Look out! We’re going to collide!’
No-one took any notice. It was just a bit of Thom trickery and the closing walls were too engrossing.
Dingoes! The wall on the left was only 12 metres away and the close proximity increased the impression of speed. Wirrin checked: only 50 kilometres per hour. Practically a standstill compared to open space motion.
‘Ooh!’
Everyone gasped at the sudden panorama and once again the ship came to a stop. After a few seconds of taking in the new spectacle, Wirrin joined with Calen and Thom to check how Sonic was coping.
‘I am thankful you are guiding us, Thom. I think I would have forgotten the controls and crashed into that prominence.’
Wirrin was feeling overwhelmed himself. The narrow gap had suddenly given way on one side to an enormous opening which the scans later showed extended to a depth of almost 6 kilometres. On the other side the wall continued for 500 metres before giving way to an equally deep cavern.
Thom changed course to follow the curve of the wall while Calen, with prompts from everyone else, directed the display to the passing succession of rifts, canyons and jagged outcrops. Wirrin watched as they passed the prominence Sonic was talking about, a highly irregular cone-shaped mass jutting half a kilometre from the surrounding wall. On Earth it would be called a mountain, but here, with their sense of up and down determined by the ship’s grav-fields, it appeared to be hanging from the ceiling. Changing the aspect of the ship would make it look normal but then everything else would change perspective.
Wirrin thought it looked like a miniature world on the inside of a sphere.
‘Space caverns are wondrous. Better than sea caverns.’
Sonic had left his InfoSystem and was as close to the main display as he could manage, transfixed. The ship started moving faster.
‘What’s happeni
ng, Thom?’
‘We’re only a third of the way through and it’s taking too long.’
‘Why does time matter?’
‘We’re meant to be meeting with the Comet.’
‘The Comet will wait, Thom, as long as we require. We must make the most of a special opportunity like this.’
Calen and Wirrin agreed. This was unique.
‘I agree with Sonic, Thom. Instead of going home today we could try out the ship’s cabin tonight and then leave tomorrow afternoon if we keep finding things to explore. We’ve only been along one side of this cavern so far, and according to Turaku’s 3D map there are more caverns further on.’
‘Really, Wirrin? Well that’s good enough for me. It means the Comet crew will have to wait for us though.’
That wasn’t an issue. Crewing on the Comet had real cachet and the people who managed to get positions loved their time on the ship. Wirrin fiddled with his InfoSystem.
‘They won’t mind. I’ve just patched our visuals through to the main display on the Comet so they can see exactly what we see.’
‘That will be spectacular for them, Thom.’
The main display on the Comet was half as big again as their wall display at home and, when it wasn’t partitioned into subsections, was indeed spectacular. Wirrin recalled the hushed moment when the Comet was approaching Earth.
The ship worked its way around to the opposite side of the cavern.
‘Why does this side look so different?’ Calen said.
Wirrin was wondering the same thing. Apart from one jagged gash the surface here was relatively smooth.
‘It’s not the same asteroid, Calen. The composition probably makes it look different. Move closer to that crack. It must be over a kilometre long.’
‘Dingoes! It goes in for nearly 3 kilometres and then turns weird. Look at all those channels or whatever they are.’
‘Take us in there, Thom. We want to explore.’ Sonic’s voice thrummed with excitement.
‘There’s a wide part along here which would let us go in for 600 metres but after that it gets too narrow.’
Wirrin gawped at the display.
‘Is it safe? It doesn’t look like we’ll even fit.’
‘Easy! We’ll have 10 metres of clearance for most of the way before we’re blocked. Once we start it won’t look so narrow.’