SWNOVELS Chapter Chapter Four
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Major entered his cabin exhausted. He was still disgusted with the crew of Purity 5 for their reckless operation. He sat down at his desk trying to relax tense muscles. He looked around his cabin finding sanctuary in his personal belongings. Major’s cabin was organized and clean. It was distinctly manly in its appointments but not spartan. His pilot’s certification hung proudly in its mahogany frame over his desk. On the main long wall hung detailed solar system charts on display screens showing all orbital lanes, navigation buoys, fuel, and supply stations, and known hazardous debris. These charts were electronically connected to various space agencies and updated regularly. Major was diligent in checking these charts on a daily basis for updates and any broadcasted alerts. His bookcase contained a fine collection of adventure novels, tales of the sea, and philosophical texts. His favorite was his full set of Tarzan of the Apes series. He got up and reached for one as they always took his mind off the business. He looked at the cover then put it
back deciding he was not really in the mood to read. The incident with Purity 5 was still bugging him. They should be reported he thought. Then Carlos’ suggestion came to mind. He could preserve Purity 5’s negligence in a captain’s log which did not yet exist. This would get the matter off his chest and record Purity 5’s dereliction.
Major sat back down at his desk, turned on his terminal, and opened a file which he named Captain’s Log. He began dictating: “Captain’s Log dated March 11, 2064. Today we ” And then
nothing came. He stared at his screen and looked around the room. Nothing. He didn’t know how to begin. And he felt stupid. He still did not believe anyone would read or care what he had to say. Carlos just watched too many old TV shows. “This is stupid,” Major said and he saw these words type out on his screen. “No, no, no.” And these words appeared. “Argh, Stop dictation,” he ordered his computer. The computer replied, “Dictation stopped.” “Delete all,” his words disappeared. Major turned off his computer. He decided it was time to end the day. He found his bed and turned out the lights.
Meanwhile back on the bridge, Rosalind was studying the flight plan of the Survivor. She knew the Survivor was following a Hohmann Transfer Orbit. She followed the trajectory of the orbit and checked all the available charts for known hazards
- asteroids, rogue comets, stray rocket boosters. Her eyes strained for about an hour, but she could find no obvious threats to spacecraft. She tried rubbing the fatigue out of her increasingly heavy eyes. They closed and with her eyes closed she could see the image of a drifting Survivor. She was lost and off course. She felt the dizzying haze her crew and her husband were feeling. She tried to picture the face of her husband but she could not. He only appeared in silhouette, a dark figure constantly moving away from her. She tried keeping up; she could not. She then saw an explosion. It was as if she was there. She felt the heat of flames, the acrid smell of smoke, the lurch and out-of-control flight of the spacecraft. She was tumbling with the entire crew still not being able to see her husband though she frantically called out to him. All went black momentarily. She reached out to find something solid. She thought she felt the body of a man, a familiar but unfamiliar man. Just as she was grabbing hold, what appeared before her was a dusty, red landscape.
Boulders large and small littered the terrain. She felt lighter and it was harder to breathe. In the distance, she saw grey smoke rising from a tangle of metal. She instinctively ran to what she knew was the wreckage of a spaceship. Surrounding the wreckage there was a group of figures all with their backs to Rosalind standing somberly. She approached with apprehension and dread. She tried to look at what the grim figures were looking at but they intentionally blocked her from viewing. She pleaded with them, “Please, please let me see.” She struggled against their determination.
She was on the verge of becoming frantic. “Please, please, I must see!” She was prevented in every way. Just then she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned and saw Major who took her hand bidding her to leave the scene.
“BIZZ, BIZZ, WARNING! BIZZ, BIZZ, WARNING! CARDON DIOXIDE LEVELS ARE HIGH! BIZZ, BIZZ, WARNING! BIZZ, BIZZ, WARNING! CARBON DIOXIDE LEVELS ARE HIGH!”
Rosalind picked up her drowsy head from the deep sleep she was in. The alarm startled her. The disturbing images of her dream were still before her as she tried to make sense of the waking
sounds. “Bizz, Bizz, Warning! Bizz, Bizz, Warning!” She fumbled her hands across the control panel looking for what alarm was sounding. Clearer sight was returning and she saw the flashing red light of the carbon dioxide detectors. She saw that the levels were rising rapidly in the cargo bay, while they were also rising but more slowly throughout the ship.
This was serious. The ship and crew were in danger. She needed to wake Major and Carlos immediately.