SWNOVELS Chapter This bit looks a bit barren 1st September 2060
SEG002
The starship had reached SEG002. They had completed the journey using what Gabriel imagined was the cruising speed for the Ramstat engines, which meant very fast indeed. With the ship’s cockpit turned transparent, they had circled the planet twice. SEG002 was a planet with a low level of oxygen content in the atmosphere; too low to sustain human life. Parts of the planet were covered in rich, dark forest. These areas seemed to be frequented by wild storms; the rain would lash down in torrents, lightening would crack open the skies, and strong winds buffeted the starship as it passed slowly over the land at a height of a few hundred yards. Then the storms would pass, and the forests would steam in the richly humid air.
In stark contrast, other parts of SEG002 appeared to be dry and arid. Harsh winds had long-ago scoured away the soil covering, eroding the underlying rocks, cutting channels into the rock’s softness. The result was a vista of fabulous rock spires and turrets.
The starship currently hovered above such a region of rock spires and ravines.
“Looks like the home for a bunch of religious hermits,” Ginny ventured.
“And not a shop for miles,” said Gabriel, grinning.
“I guess if you were here out of religious conviction, you wouldn’t necessarily want to have a Maccy D right next door,” Ginny said.
“But maybe somewhere nearby where you could buy or at least grow crops might be handy.”
“I guess so,” said Ginny.
“Ship?” Gabriel said.
“Yes, Gabriel?” the starship’s computer system replied.
“Can you please take us to the site that will become the SEG’s resource extraction site on this planet?”
“Very well, Gabriel.”
The starship turned gently in the air.
“But no rush, please. We have plenty of time,” Gabriel qualified.
“You have 116 years before you need to teleport back to the Earth,” Vicky noted.
The starship moved off, keeping to an altitude of about 400 yards from ground level.
“Most of this planet seems to be hot, airless and barren,” Gabriel said, looking down at the parade of rock spires below.
“It is a mining planet,” explained Vicky. “It wasn’t selected as a tourist resort. It was one of the earliest ...”
“The second, to be precise,” interrupted Ginny.
“Exactly,” said Vicky. “It was the second planet identified by SEG as a potential mining planet. And they were selecting based on the prevalence of suitable raw materials.”
“Not on the prevalence of sandy beaches, with warm blue waters lapping against the rocks?” enquired Gabriel, cheekily.
“As you have seen, some parts of the planet do have dense tropical jungle,” said the Ship. “Maybe those areas would offer more interest if you wished to explore a little.”
“How do you mean, explore,” said Ginny.
“The suits that you used when re-attaching the Ramstat motor, they can be used to explore a low-oxygen content planet such as this,” explained the Ship.
“And would the small thrusters give us the ability to fly?” Ginny asked excitedly.
“Of course,” the Ship replied.
“Cool,” Ginny said.
Gabriel looked slightly less excited at the prospect.