Time to Orbit: Unknown

<<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

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Glossary] .......... Next> I watched the people on the bridge very carefully for some time, wishing I could read their moods properly. A lot of them were definitely afraid of me, but some of the drakes especially seemed… well, they glanced at me a lot, but when they did, … Continue reading 10: Housekeeping

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The Hypati launcher grows. New shuttle parts are constructed. I spend far more time than I want to loading and unloading tiny battery-operated trucks with huge chunks of metal and plastic to be bolted to other parts of metal and plastic up at the base of … Continue reading 178: SOLUTION

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Glossary] .......... Next> I listened carefully to Glath’s story, stopping him several times to clarify key points. I wrote the whole thing down, then read over it, then asked more questions to fill in some of the more obvious holes and address any conflicts. Then, confident that I had … Continue reading 9: Every species walks alone

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The letters are written, read and discussed by the crew, read and discussed by the Leadership, rewritten, checked carefully for inconsistencies, rewritten again, and eventually sent. Captain Klees receives a stern letter back informing him that all orders related to major colony decisions should be confirmed … Continue reading 177: DESTINATION