On Mars Pathfinder (The Mike Lane Stories Book 1) (36 page)

Supply Drop #3

I arrived at the damaged supply drop and spent a few minutes looking at the support struts holding up this Martian leaning tower of Pisa. It seemed to be holding its canted position, but I wasn’t sure if that was by design or by prayer; perhaps a bit of both.

Walking back to supply drop #3, I could finally take a careful look at the chunk taken out of its north side. The missing piece was about three feet high, two feet deep, and covered an area about 20% of the circumference of the cargo ship. There was a bit of metal and ejecta on the ground, but most of it had been vapourized by the intensity of the alien weapon’s blast. Supply drop #3 had hydroponics equipment, as well as an inflatable Kevlar Quonset hut to house the equipment. This was only a test system. It was supposed to supply me with fresh vegetables and greens; enough to survive on with a vegetarian diet. The future full colony version was going to connect to a utility access system so that we wouldn’t have to suit up to get to it. For the purpose of my proof of concept mission however, I would have to suit up twice daily to go to the structure.

I had my exterior helmet camera in live feed mode. That meant the signal was going back to the W-Hab controller, and immediately sent on its way to Terra. I also had the hand camera recording the angles that the helmet camera couldn’t. I did a close up inspection of the almost perfectly incised hole itself, to start with. I had expected jagged pieces of metal upon upclose inspection, but that wasn’t the case. The entire outline of the hole looked like someone had melted it, and then smoothed it out. There were some spots on the edge of the hole that looked like the metal had turned to slag and dripped down to the exposed interior decking. With my gloved hand I pinched and pulled on this smoother, melted edge, and it broke away like brittle glass for about 8 centimetres from the edge. Then it toughened up again. I was able to do this same thing in several places around the recently added opening. Whatever that weapon was, it seemed to have altered the entire chemical, or possibly, the molecular make-up of the metal right around the perimeter of the hole. I shuddered at what it might have done to me. I looked over both shoulders at that point, having a wee case of the willies, but didn’t see anything. I slipped the energy beam rifle from one shoulder to the other.

Peering inside, I couldn’t see much either. This side of the cargo container had been where the inflatable Kevlar Quonset hut was packed. A great chunk of the material was missing. I could see several layers of the inflatable structure, so I knew right away that it was useless. It would have several great gaping holes in it when unrolled. The Kevlar walls of the structure were 80 millimetres thick. On the inside of the structure were inflatable tubes to create a rigid frame. These inflatable tubes were 20 centimetres in diameter, with 10 millimetre thick walls of the same material, spaced every 60 centimetres. I could see some of those tubes had been damaged as well.

The process to install the Quonset hut would have been simple. Step one, clear the installation site area, 15 metres by 5 metres, of any rocks and debris larger than pebbles. Step two, unroll the Quonset hut structure, orienting the structure so that the rounded end faced the prevailing winds. We knew the prevailing winds at our colony site were North-North-East. Step three, with the help of Little Dawg and Big Dawg, install the ground pin system to secure the structure in place. These pins, plus the weight of the interior should (I stress “should”) keep the structure from blowing away. The full system yet to be delivered would actually be installed partially below grade, to assist with its stability and wind resistance. The 80 millimetre carbon nanotube reinforced Kevlar shell with the inflatable structural support tubes, and the inherent flexibility of fabric would, I had been assured, withstand impacts up to 310 joules or newton-metres of energy. That would be approximately a one kilogram meteorite travelling at 90 km/hour. It would also withstand dust devils up to a certain, unspecified size. Step four, use the accompanying Mars Atmospheric Air Compression System (MAACS) to inflate the interior 20 centimetre wide inflatable support struts. Step five, install the graphene reinforced flooring panels. This included moving all of the necessary equipment into the Quonset hut. Step six, install and activate the airlock system. Step seven, hook up the atmospheric system. This procedure included steps to tie it into the AtmoGen, and then run the scrubbers to slowly replace the Mars atmosphere admitted during the installation. It would only take about three hours to remove the Martian atmosphere, and replace it with human breathable, and therefore plant breathable, Terran-similar air.

The system designers promised a three-day installation time frame. The mission planning team had changed that to a five-day installation time frame. Alas, it would be a zero-day installation time frame until they delivered a new inflatable structure. I was sure that this was already in the works, back home. The next launch window for supplies opened in sixteen months, lasting from July to September. They had more than enough time to get it ready. It just meant that I’d be eating protein bars, and drinking protein shakes a lot longer than anticipated.

I thought of Loreena. I thought of Carrie and her boys. I thought of the salvaged green-and-white baseball cap, now sitting on my bunk. I thought of the camping trip Hans and his family had invited me to tag along with. I thought about my son and his wife. I thought about Mary. I looked around at the nothingness. I looked back at the damaged cargo drop. This was my life now. I had chosen it. Those other things were memories. I’d just have to try and create some new ones here, by myself, until Colony 1 arrived in about six years’ time. Neither Loreena, my Dad, or my Mom would have wanted me to dwell on the past when there was so much living left to do in front of me.

Holding the strap of the energy weapon slung over my shoulder, I turned around to scan the sky. I thought I saw a shimmer in the air, but it was almost in the exact same direction as the sun, West-South-West. It could have easily been the sun playing tricks on my eyes through the inevitable lens effect of my helmet’s face plate. I moved around a bit, but couldn’t make the same shimmer reappear, so I chalked it up to nerves. In fact, there was a cloaked Eridani scout vessel there, hovering about 600 metres away, and keeping itself in the line of sight against the sun. I didn’t know that at the time though.

I walked around to the other side of the cargo ship #3 to the main cargo hatch. All of the supply drops were oriented so that the cargo hatch was facing south. I opened the small access panel, punched in the unlock code, and then turned the unlock handle. The door opened a few centimetres on its own. I grabbed the seam of the door, and pulled the right side hatch open first; using the cable attached to the inside to anchor the door open at a hardpoint connection that hadn’t been vapourized. I opened the left hatch and secured it in a similar fashion.

I gave the hand signal sequence to Big Dawg and he came over dutifully, following my hand commands to stop right in front of the open hatch. I did a slow motion hop up onto Big Dawgs’ cargo deck, feeling a bit like the Six Million Dollar man, and then stepped up onto the cargo deck of the cargo ship. Everything was packed tightly inside and secured against the horrendous mechanical forces of Terran launch and Mars descent. Nothing was out of place. The rolled up Mars Quonset hut was large enough that no light was apparent from the hole on the other side of the ship. There was no light visible around the remainder of the inflatable structure, packed tightly inside. Everything else looked secure and intact. The hydroponics equipment, exterior lighting packages, and the small lighting power generator all looked intact and ready to be used. I took a moment to record an in-helmet video for Mission Control, confirming the observations I had made on the inside of the cargo ship with what the camera was showing. I let them know that it looked like they would only need to replace the inflatable structure. Of course, waiting as long as I would have to, they would have to replace the seed stock as well. For now though, the remnants of the inflatable Quonset hut were packed tight enough against the opening on the far side that I felt the contents of the damaged cargo ship would survive the Martian winter.

With nothing else to do on my work manifest at the present moment, I thought about unpacking some of the lighting equipment. I could take out what was necessary to string up around the W-Hab and the L-Hab, and activate the lighting supply generator (wind powered with solar backup for battery charging). I could leave the rest of the lighting equipment in place until the other supply drops had been moved.

Supply drop #2 had a small, but powerful, electrically powered tractor inside it. It was for the water mining jobs primarily, but would also serve as an equipment mover. It was powerful enough to move the supply drops, fully loaded, with the assistance of the supply drop cargo ship under-carriage train wheels. It could move them without that assistance if they were empty. Supply drop number six also had a small flatbed trailer and a crane attachment, both designed to work with the small tractor.

I figured I should probably go off script and set to work unpacking the tractor, and then the crane and flatbed. They would be of more use to me at present than the lighting would. The lighting wouldn’t really be in need for another six weeks or so. I would definitely need the tractor and crane attachment to salvage the last supply drop that arrived. I turned around and jumped down on Big Dawgs’ cargo deck, then moved him out of the way. I unsnapped the securing line on first the left hatch, then the right hatch, and sealed up the doors on the cargo hatch. I turned around to head over to supply drop #2, and froze in my tracks. I was looking at four shimmering orbs hanging in the air between where I was standing, and the Habitats.

As I stared at them, a fifth one moved into place. That fifth one’s movement unfroze me. I crouched down onto the ground, crouching behind Big Dawg. I pulled the energy weapon off my shoulder, pressed the VOX button three times on my forearm control unit, and brought the energy weapon up to my shoulder.

I didn’t even wait for sexy voice to tell me she was awaiting my command. I simply began talking to her, “Castle Cellar, ready weapons platform, ready weapons one, two and three. Hold weapons one, two and three. Authenticate alpha kilo five, two, seven, authenticate. Activate referential targeting system, target unknown, hostile contacts one, three and five. Confirm.”

Sexy voice now had her chance. After a few seconds pause, she responded. “Weapons ready. Weapons one, two, and three in a ready state; and at hold condition. Referential targeting system engaged. Thermobarics one, two, and three targeting unknown hostile references one, three and five. Confirmed.”

I popped my head up with the weapon aimed, and saw the five shimmering spots of air in front of me. I pulled my head back down quickly, and waited for the ground to explode behind me but it didn’t. I popped back up for another quick look, and the shimmering spots of air were still there. That was weird. There were five of them. They could have vapourized the entire cargo row, and me along with it. Why hadn’t they?

I popped my head back up, and they were still there in place between me and the Habitats. I stood up quickly with my energy weapon shouldered. I stood there with the middle shimmering spot of air centred in the reticule of the targeting eye piece.

I stepped out from behind Big Dawg, and they didn’t move. I kept the weapon trained on the centre small ship for no other reason than, the others would be equally far away from it.

Why weren’t they firing at me? Why hadn’t they destroyed me? Something was definitely odd here. I took a tentative step towards them. Nothing. I took two more steps. Nothing. I started walking slowly towards them and therefore, towards the W-Hab. Within a few steps they did start moving. The centre one was backing away from me slightly, with each step I took. The other four were slowly moving around me, encircling me. By the time I had moved 50 metres, I was in the centre of a Mexican firing squad. I stopped moving, and slowly turned a full circle; training my weapon on one after another, until the energy weapon was lined up on the first one again. Still nothing. They weren’t killing me. They weren’t doing anything except watching me.

“Castle Cellar, safe all weapons. Authenticate, alpha kilo five, two, seven, authenticate.”

“Thermobaric one, two and three are powering down.” After a pause, “All weapons are in a safe state. Bay number one is secured. Bay number two is secure. Platform is secure.”

I lowered my energy weapon, holding it with both hands, but now pointing it at the ground. I turned a slow full circle again, watching the shimmering spots of air. Halfway through the turn, the shimmers were suddenly replaced by five solid-looking metal balls that looked exactly like the one from my last encounter, without the damage of course. They were no longer cloaked. They just hung there in the air, not even bobbing. That meant they were no longer concerned about stealth. This game they were playing had just changed, and I just wasn’t sure what it meant.

I raised the weapon slightly to hold it at port-arms, and then started slowly walking, sauntering would be more precise, towards the W-Hab. As I slowly walked homeward, the five grey ships followed me in perfect step. They held their positions from each other and from me, keeping in step with me. This continued without change until the lead orb was about 20 metres from the W-Hab. It then moved its position to be directly above me. I stopped at that and looked up at it a few moments, having to lean back to do so. It didn’t look any different from the bottom. No exhaust ports, no obvious propulsion system. The small round indentation with the nubbin of the weapon was visible, but that was all that was visible on the surface. I was too far away from them to see any of the faint seams or joints that could be seen when you were upclose to them.