Time to Orbit: Unknown

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> Pale orange steam blasts the right side of my face, burning the skin immediately. I press my mask down over my nose and mouth with one hand, trying to avoid breathing whatever it is, and stumble back, but I can’t see. I back into … Continue reading 119: SIGHT

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> “Klees to Denish,” the captain says into his radio, “we’re at the site and starting work. It’s just matching the colours, right? Over.” “Yes, Captain. Each plug in the same colour socket. They only fit the right way up, cannot go wrong. Over.” “Roger … Continue reading 118: VIEW

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> We all, of course, gather in Engine Ring 1 for the reading. It’s a tense moment. I find myself shifting from foot to foot, holding my breath, exchanging looks with – “Yep, there’s an ozone layer,” Sam says almost immediately. I blink. “That was … Continue reading 117: TUBE

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> Shortly after Hylara passes the sun, Captain Klees calls a meeting. “Let’s go over what we know about… everything. Everything started with the Antarcticans developing the Kleiner array. This allowed us to view and study exoplanets in much greater detail than previously, and actually … Continue reading 116: REVIEW

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> It’s about 2am on our personal ship schedule, but both the captain and I are awake. I can feel his breathing through his back, measured but not the slow, soft breath of sleep. I reach my arms around him and lay a hand on … Continue reading 115: SAFE

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> The next morning, we assemble around the picnic table, and Lina explains what she and the Friend have spent the past day investigating. “So. We have a hypothesis that may actually answer quite a lot of questions.” “Great,” Tinera says. “I love things that … Continue reading 114: REACTION

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> By popular agreement and lighting coordination, the whole crew is on the same basic 24 hour schedule, so we tend to have breakfast together unless somebody’s busy or feels like sleeping in. We also tend to have our crew meetings over breakfast, so nobody’s … Continue reading 113: SENTENCE

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> “What does that mean, a coherent radio message?” Captain Klees asks. “Somebody talking to us? From Earth?” “Unlikely, with our dish,” Sam says, “although we’re close enough to Hylara that if they were trying to contact us on Hylara, we’d pick it up if … Continue reading 112: COHERENCE

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> I’m chopping vegetables and handing them to Captain Klees for a morning omelette when Lina strolls in. “Captain, do you mind retaking some scans? I’ve just about wrapped up your health assessment but we’re getting some strange results. A scanner error, I think.” Captain … Continue reading 111: SCAN

<<First .......... <Prev .......... [Archive] .......... [Map] .......... Next> .......... Last>> “So how’s our new home planet?” I ask Sam as we check the atmosphere in the Habitation Ring. They shrug. “Still orbiting. Presumably still mysteriously oxygenated. It’s passing in front of the sun right now so we won’t get much in the way of … Continue reading 110: GRAVES