Time to Orbit: Unknown

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The next day, I wake up feeling… off. There’s some sort of strange pressure in my head. Not a headache, exactly, but something unusual. A weird… taste? No, rinsing my mouth out does nothing. Shielding my eyes or turning the lights out does help. Some kind … Continue reading 148: WAR

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> We gather back in our living dome with Max. This isn’t a conversation to be had lurking in a security room underground. “The plan,” Max says over a hot cup of coffee, “was to establish as many Vaults as possible in as many locations as possible. … Continue reading 147: COLONISATION

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> Going through the cargo door leads to a small room ending in another cargo door. This room has two more guards in it, meaning that 1.5% of the entire population of Hylara are occupied just guarding the few halls and rooms we’d walked through. There’s no … Continue reading 146: VAULT

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The metal doors leading into the side of the dune are thick. Heavy. Free of sand, although the angle suggests that sand would fall past the guards and onto them easily with the slightest wind; probably swept clean regularly. Tinera narrows her eyes as we get … Continue reading 145: UNDERGROUND

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> Celti seems to be doing calculations too, glancing between Max and Captain Klees and looking somewhat baffled. “If we asked for medical supplies?” “Absolutely. Tell us what you need and we’ll get it sent down.” “Weapons?” “I don’t think the ship carries weapons, but there are … Continue reading 144: COORDINATION

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> Max gets us robes. They show us how to tie the belts. They explain that different belts don’t have any official meaning, but fashions go in and out among different groups of friends, so your belt can incidentally declare who you hang out with or what … Continue reading 143: CULTURE

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> “What? You can’t go out there!” Max goes to rise from the table, and Tinera and the Friend let them, but don’t let go, don’t let them try to block our path as we head for the door. “You can’t!” “We won’t put the colony in … Continue reading 142: SEEDS

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> We all leap back, as if a bit more distance will protect Max from the viruses in the mostly enclosed tent. “You said the viral treatment would take another week after our landing!” Captain Klees says, accusing. “You can’t be here like this!” “It is a … Continue reading 141: ANSWERS

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The next day is an awkward day of inactivity. It’s frustrating, but there’s not all that much we can really do. We consider going for another look around the settlement, but it’s much more productive to wait until we can go out without the suits and … Continue reading 140: GAMES

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... Next> .......... Last>> We discuss various possibilities of what, if anything at all, is strange about the colony, but it only goes in circles. The only thing we can all (except Tal) agree on pretty quickly is that we probably didn’t stumble onto a planet with abandoned alien tech. … Continue reading 139: SURGERY