Time to Orbit: Unknown

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Glossary] .......... Next> The problem with space is that there’s a limited supply of everything. Not that we’re necessarily short on things. Just limited. Everything has to be recycled – water, air, organics. Recycling efficiency is time; any loss puts a limit on how long before you need to … Continue reading 15: Hold my beer

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] It’s movie night. It’s a very special movie night. A half-day marathon of all of my favourites, one year since our return to the Courageous, and the three hundred strong population of the ship necessitate the use of a proper projector to make sure that everyone can see the movie. … Continue reading 183: LAUNCH

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Glossary] .......... Next> I told myself that I could afford the luxury of feeling sorry for myself while my body finished healing, and then it was right back to work on Project: Get Home. In actual fact I didn’t even have that long, because the thing about trying to … Continue reading 14: This is my crew

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> Captain Klees drafts a letter for Antarctica congratulating and thanking them for the successful launch, and noting that some last minute repairs to the shuttle were necessary and we’d had to build new docking arms that did, do our great relief, work, leaving the old ones … Continue reading 182: CLUSTER

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Glossary] .......... Next> Turns out being a space pirate sucks. Sitting there alone on the floor of my ring, naked and in pain that was only becoming more distracting as the flesh-sewing endorphins wore off, I tallied up all the various ways that my life was in immediate probable … Continue reading 13: A call into the void

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> “Retrieval pod to ascent pod. Come in, ascent pod.” Captain Klees pulls himself out of his half-doze and reaches for the controls. “This is ascent pod, we hear you. Over.” “This is Gavi Sloap, piloting the retrieval pod. It’s an honour to be speaking with you, … Continue reading 181: RETRIEVAL

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Glossary] .......... Next> I had thought, hoped, for a little while, that Charlie might be immune to the drake toxin. It had held up remarkably well for far longer than anybody should with just one sting in them, let alone several. But after making its final declaration on the … Continue reading 12: Trust

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The shuttle has a weight limit. It’s designed to carry the five of use back to the ship, and not much else. We lied to Antarctica about how heavy we all were, and the removal of the docking clamps will give us a bit more weight … Continue reading 180: ASCENT

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Glossary] .......... Next> What the hell was I supposed to do? I wasn’t overreacting, was I? Maybe… the captain had gone to Earth and abducted a human, knowing the stories. She was on the run from the Queen in a flying prison that was ridiculously ill-equipped for her chosen … Continue reading 11: Hooray for Piracy

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The crew aboard the ship are a lot more cautious about the AI idea than we are, but do have to concede that they didn’t have a better solution. Eventually everyone agrees that if we can’t get a reliable AI from Antarctica or come up with … Continue reading 179: PREPARATION