another star system? Alex said the last thought aloud.
“Talkin’ to yourself, Alex?” asked Connie, a slight smirk on her face. “Are we losin’ it?” She was glib but not unconcerned. Her hand instinctively moved to the control stick in front of her, ready to take control of the ship. Alex noticed and smiled, suspecting that his banter was undermining his credibility as a pilot. “Ready to grab the controls if I freak?” he asked jokingly. “You’re a good pilot, Tsu. Why lap dog for the professors?”
Connie’s dark eyes flashed. “I’m in it for the adventure,” she admitted. “This beats sitting in a lab. Sure, politics got me here, but piloting is my goal. Better than being a lab slave.”
Diver shuddered and a buzzer sounded. Alex knew it meant that the Ganymede LGS System was trying to lock on to their controls. “Time to give up the com to mother Ganny,” he said, flipping a switch on the dash and leaning back.
While they glided into port, Alex and Connie made idle chatter while he surveyed the cabin, examining the alterations. None of the crew stations seemed to have changed. Over his right shoulder was Johnny’s science bubble, its black cowl now drawn up tight to the ceiling. Everything about it seemed bigger than before. On either side of the cabin were the two other workstations. The one on the right, located not far from the service hatch, was the communication console, built into the wall. On the opposite wall was Tony Sciarra’s customized telemetry and radar center. This was definitely larger than Alex remembered, no doubt further augmented by Sciarra, and fairly recently from the look of it.
“This ship has seen action, Tsu. Too bad you witnessed it secondhand.”
Tsu stretched her compact yet lithe frame. “Oh, I don’ know, Alex. Cornwall had a virtual link to that bubble of Johnny’s.” She looked at the black hemisphere pressed to the ceiling. “Granted ’t you were out ’a range most o’ the time. But we all had a ride. It was like being there.”
Alex watched the com adjusting itself. The Ganny Colony Control boys were altering their flight path to miss the monoliths of fractured ice that jutted, mountain sized, from Ganymede’s tortured terrain. It bothered Alex that he hadn’t yet seen the beacons of Gannytown. He didn’t like other people flying his ship, but he had no choice but to sit helplessly and hope the remote pilot didn’t make any mistakes.
He thought of Mary, an easy way to rid his mind of unpleasant thoughts, and wondered how she felt about the Goddard mission. After all, she was happy with her shop and her cats. It was all she said she really wanted, to live a normal life with Alex and her cats. Stubbs had told him, perhaps as an incentive, that pets were in some cases allowed aboard Goddard , and Mary could take one, and only one. “Not a whole store full,” he’d emphasized. Alex guessed it would be Inky. Not a guess, really. Somehow he knew it would be Inky.
An alarm sounded. “Final approach,” remarked Tsu. “Five minutes to home.”
7 Mary had taken a tunnel tram from the shop. A Ganny woman was with her, holding Inky and a wheeler full of bags. Mary was breathless.
“Kass here’ll be minding the shop while we’re gone,” she said, giving Alex a hug.
Alex looked disappointed. “But I thought we were going home, at least for a while.”
Connie stepped out of Diver’s hatch. She smiled briefly and nodded when she saw Mary, but her expression changed when she saw Alex. “I just got a report, Alex. Did I hear right? We’re going out again? Right now?”
“I thought you both knew,” said Mary. A sad look crossed her face when she saw Alex’s disappointment, but she brightened as she directed his attention to the limp black cat in Kass’ arms. “Inky is going along.”
“Hi’s, Alex,” said Kass, brushing her brunette bangs to the side. “It’s more like I’s borrows th’ shop. Jus’ ’til you be comin’ back.”
“Talkin’ to yourself, Alex?” asked Connie, a slight smirk on her face. “Are we losin’ it?” She was glib but not unconcerned. Her hand instinctively moved to the control stick in front of her, ready to take control of the ship. Alex noticed and smiled, suspecting that his banter was undermining his credibility as a pilot. “Ready to grab the controls if I freak?” he asked jokingly. “You’re a good pilot, Tsu. Why lap dog for the professors?”
Connie’s dark eyes flashed. “I’m in it for the adventure,” she admitted. “This beats sitting in a lab. Sure, politics got me here, but piloting is my goal. Better than being a lab slave.”
Diver shuddered and a buzzer sounded. Alex knew it meant that the Ganymede LGS System was trying to lock on to their controls. “Time to give up the com to mother Ganny,” he said, flipping a switch on the dash and leaning back.
While they glided into port, Alex and Connie made idle chatter while he surveyed the cabin, examining the alterations. None of the crew stations seemed to have changed. Over his right shoulder was Johnny’s science bubble, its black cowl now drawn up tight to the ceiling. Everything about it seemed bigger than before. On either side of the cabin were the two other workstations. The one on the right, located not far from the service hatch, was the communication console, built into the wall. On the opposite wall was Tony Sciarra’s customized telemetry and radar center. This was definitely larger than Alex remembered, no doubt further augmented by Sciarra, and fairly recently from the look of it.
“This ship has seen action, Tsu. Too bad you witnessed it secondhand.”
Tsu stretched her compact yet lithe frame. “Oh, I don’ know, Alex. Cornwall had a virtual link to that bubble of Johnny’s.” She looked at the black hemisphere pressed to the ceiling. “Granted ’t you were out ’a range most o’ the time. But we all had a ride. It was like being there.”
Alex watched the com adjusting itself. The Ganny Colony Control boys were altering their flight path to miss the monoliths of fractured ice that jutted, mountain sized, from Ganymede’s tortured terrain. It bothered Alex that he hadn’t yet seen the beacons of Gannytown. He didn’t like other people flying his ship, but he had no choice but to sit helplessly and hope the remote pilot didn’t make any mistakes.
He thought of Mary, an easy way to rid his mind of unpleasant thoughts, and wondered how she felt about the Goddard mission. After all, she was happy with her shop and her cats. It was all she said she really wanted, to live a normal life with Alex and her cats. Stubbs had told him, perhaps as an incentive, that pets were in some cases allowed aboard Goddard , and Mary could take one, and only one. “Not a whole store full,” he’d emphasized. Alex guessed it would be Inky. Not a guess, really. Somehow he knew it would be Inky.
An alarm sounded. “Final approach,” remarked Tsu. “Five minutes to home.”
7 Mary had taken a tunnel tram from the shop. A Ganny woman was with her, holding Inky and a wheeler full of bags. Mary was breathless.
“Kass here’ll be minding the shop while we’re gone,” she said, giving Alex a hug.
Alex looked disappointed. “But I thought we were going home, at least for a while.”
Connie stepped out of Diver’s hatch. She smiled briefly and nodded when she saw Mary, but her expression changed when she saw Alex. “I just got a report, Alex. Did I hear right? We’re going out again? Right now?”
“I thought you both knew,” said Mary. A sad look crossed her face when she saw Alex’s disappointment, but she brightened as she directed his attention to the limp black cat in Kass’ arms. “Inky is going along.”
“Hi’s, Alex,” said Kass, brushing her brunette bangs to the side. “It’s more like I’s borrows th’ shop. Jus’ ’til you be comin’ back.”
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