The Solar Wind (11 page)

Chapter 9: The Andromeda

On Monday Ava returned to work ready to put the terrible events of Friday night behind her. Although she felt better, she became perhaps more cautious than ever before. As she walked to the OMC she let her thoughts wander. She felt so alone without her friends from the Andromeda stationed there and made a decision to try and join a self defense class when she returned from her trip to Capri. She did not know whether or not she wanted to return to the gym anytime soon to see any of the women she had tried to be friends with. They didn’t want to stick together at the club, each breaking off and going their separate ways. Maybe Ava was just used to the organization, support and unity of the crew. It was a group that she wanted to belong to and it felt as though she belonged there.

After work Ava set to work completing the necessary online documents needed for travel. She wanted to wait a few more days before packing and decided that she would take the backpack Wesley had given her along with another small bag she had recently acquired. Much to her relief the week passed smoothly and quickly. As each day came to a close she became more excited about her upcoming adventure. She wanted to buy a new outfit for the occasion, however decided to wait until they arrived on Capri, so that she could buy something new there. One of the few good things about the ITO was that it was organized. An ITO issued ID/Credit card was valid on Earth and any of the space stations and mass transit systems in orbit. Credits were the same no matter where you went, however prices were not. What could cost you a few credits somewhere could be very expensive somewhere else. Wesley had told Ava that Orionis was one of the more expensive places to live. Ava’s mind piqued with curiosity to see what Capri was like.

On Friday Ava stayed very focused and worked hard at the clinic to keep on time so that she could complete all of her charting and messages before leaving for the weekend. She did not want to run late because of the short window of time between the end of the day and the Andromeda’s departure. She wanted to have time to take a quick shower to freshen up, eat a quick snack, and complete any last minute packing before Wesley came for her. Luckily everything worked out. He arrived at her door promptly at Six. She felt strange and excited as they walked away from her small quarters, she had never been away from it overnight before. Wesley carried the heavier of the two bags as they walked and briefed her on what to expect at the hangar when passing through ITO security. The enormous hangar seemed alive with activity. Ava recognized the small ITO office she passed through only six months ago and studied the numerous monitors with the bright green letters and symbols. They passed through security smoothly, the officers were apparently used to seeing Wesley coming and going as they barely looked at his ID, however they did check Ava’s ID and online passport because it was her first time traveling. They continued down the hangar and Ava obtained her first close up view of the Andromeda.

The large sleek silver ship loomed above her as they walked nearer. She was in awe of its magnificence. Various scattered lights formed a blinking line around the perimeter of the ship. The Solar Wind seemed to pale in comparison to this magnificent sight. Wesley smiled proudly as he realized how impressed she was. Ava could see Rowan overseeing a few crates of what looked like food being delivered last minute and Naomi sat at a small computer terminal not far from the lowered entrance ramp typing something into the invisible flat keys. “She’s entering our ship into the queue for departure.” He gestured to Naomi. “Orionis has a massive hangar, but it’s congested. We have one of the larger ships so we have to coordinate with the ITO Control System so that we can take off without crashing into one of the smaller ships either coming or going.” Naomi finished her task and as she stood up and moved away the small terminal lit up and sank down into the floor, leaving a small illuminated circle where it had been. She saw Wesley and Ava and gave Ava a hug as they approached. 

“How are you Ava, much better I hope. I’m so happy you decided to come with us. I desperately need a new shopping partner.” Naomi joked.

“I’m doing well. I’m so excited to be here. The Andromeda is beautiful, I can’t wait to see what it looks like on the inside.”

Andre appeared in the ship at the top of the entrance ramp. “Let’s move it people, we’re up soon. Hi Ava. Don’t worry, we won’t crash tonight, Ash is doing the driving instead of Wesley.”

“Very funny honey,”  Naomi replied.

“He’s kidding,” Wesley defended.

“Well, let’s get going then, we’ll be departing in a few minutes and we need to get you buckled up.”  Naomi smiled as she took Ava’s arm guided her up the ramp, Wesley following behind.

Their appropriately timed humor put Ava at ease. She laughed with them as she boarded the ship. A rush of cool air hit Ava when she and the others stepped over the threshold into the ship, the door slid shut almost immediately behind them. Wesley took Ava’s travel bags off to her quarters on his way to the flight deck. Ava noticed the freshness of the air immediately as Naomi escorted her to her seat in the observation deck for lift off. “The air smells so pure and refreshing in here. It makes the air on Orionis seem downright stale. Why is there such a difference?”

“It’s easier to purify air for a small vessel such as this ship compared to an entire space station, plus we have our own oxygen garden. Capri is a much smaller station than Orionis, you’ll find you notice a difference in the air quality there as well. Either way, I think anything beats the air quality on Earth right now,” Naomi explained as she assisted Ava to buckle the safety harness. There were only a few moments before departure. “After we are safely in Orbit, Andre and I will give you a tour of the ship and show you your quarters for the weekend.” Naomi took the seat next to Ava, buckled up, and pushed a few buttons on her armrest. A monitor slid into view in front of them lit up with a view of the hangar. There were no outside windows on the sides of the ship, only numerous camera lenses at various angles, able to give the captain and crew of The Andromeda any view that they would like at any given time. The front and rear of the vessel were equipped with windows, the front for the cockpit, and the rear for the oxygen garden to allow sunlight to shine in. Ash announced over the intercom that they were about to lift off. As The Andromeda took off Ava could not believe how smooth and seemingly effortlessly the ship pulled out of the hangar into space. She was unable to watch space travel on The Solar Wind because there were no monitors showing a view of the outside.  This time she could not tear her eyes off the monitor. The ship glided slowly away from Orionis. Naomi pressed a few more buttons, giving them a view of Orionis as they pulled away. Ava stared in awe and thought the station looked beautiful with its glowing rings, the gravity stabilizers, lit up and angled protectively around it. Ava could see stars in every direction in the distance, almost like small cities themselves shining against the darkness of space.

The Andromeda hummed loudly as it picked up speed. “We’re about to make the jump to absolute velocity, then the computers will take over to navigate us. We won’t be able to look outside at that speed, all we would see is a black blur,” Naomi explained. Ava flinched as the ship pushed forward, pressing her back into her seat. Then, almost immediately the monitor went dark and the sensation and air pressure stabilized. The ship hummed gently and everything seemed peaceful. Naomi unbuckled her safety harness and motioned for Ava to do the same. “Are you ready for the grand tour?” Naomi asked cheerfully.

The first stop was the flight deck where Wesley, Andre, and Ash were overseeing the flight details and coordinates. The room seemed enormous with numerous monitors, computers, flashing lights of multiple colors, and the large windows that appeared black. They chatted for a few minutes and then moved on, with Andre joining the party. They took Ava to the kitchen and dining hall, also a large structure. Naomi took out three silver metal glasses and poured some water out of the refrigerated water dispenser for them. Ava could not believe how fresh and pure it tasted. It was probably the best tasting water she ever had. “This water is so refreshing and delicious, how do you get it so pure?” she asked Naomi and Andre.

“We put it through a more rigorous filtering system than the stations can afford to. Plus we occasionally refill on Earth as well as several of the other stations in addition to what our oxygen garden supplies us. That’s why it tastes a little different,” Andre explained lightly. All of the passages were brightly lit and well marked.  As they were leaving the kitchen they greeted Rowan and Mia on their way in to start the crew’s dinner. Andre and Naomi showed Ava the recreation rooms, the common rooms, the workout facility, the den, which also doubled as a library, the stairwells and passageways, the massive cargo hold, and the oxygen garden. Ava inhaled the fresh sweet warm air as she and her companions stepped inside the garden. The air quality seemed unmatched to anything she had ever breathed. She had also never seen such beautiful green plant life. As they walked through the garden she gently reached out and touched some of the small tomatoes that were growing. “Amazing,” she said. After a few minutes of walking in the neatly manicured garden, Ava began to feel lightheaded.  She stopped and put her hand on her head. Andre and Naomi immediately took hold her arms on each side and quickly escorted her out of the garden and into the main passageway where they sat her down on the floor. The flashing lights Ava had began to see passed. 

“I’m sorry Ava, I forgot that you are not used to breathing air with such a high saturation of oxygen, no wonder you started to feel dizzy,” Naomi apologized sincerely.

“It’s all right, I’m fine now. I’ve never seen a garden like that. Can I still see the rest of the ship?”

“Of course, we’re ready when you are.” They helped her up to her feet. Ava marveled at the numerous interconnected levels of the ship, which seemed confusing to her at first.  After a few more stops Naomi and Andre showed Ava the cabin that would be her quarters for the duration of the trip.  The ship had numerous cabins scattered throughout the ship, however Ava’s cabin was located on the lower level, down the hall from Naomi and Andre’s Cabin. “Wesley’s cabin is on the first level, nearest to the flight deck,” she explained. At the push of a button on the door frame the door slid open. “Your cabin number is 3 and you can use this keypad to enter your own security code to lock the door if you like, just please remember to erase it when you leave on Monday, I have an override code, but it’s a pain to run.” She smiled. A small bed occupied the cabin against the center of one wall, opposite a monitor on the other wall. The monitor hung in between a small closet and the bathroom; which consisted simply of a toilet, sink, mirror, and shower stall. On one side of the bed was a small dresser and mirror and on the other a small desk and chair. The walls and the furniture seemed to be made of a shiny silvery aluminum like material. The comforter on the bed brought the only color to the room, a bright blue hue. Naomi’s PCD beeped, Rowan reminding the small group that dinner was ready.

“We eat in two shifts so that the flight deck and other duties can be covered,” Naomi mentioned cheerfully. “I believe Wesley will be joining us now,” she said with a coy smile. Ava smiled back as they left for the dining hall.

“Did you enjoy the tour?” Wesley inquired happily as he greeted her in the dining hall. He seemed relaxed as he smiled at Ava.

“Yes, your ship is extraordinary! I can’t believe how much space you have, and so much to do for fun. I’m so jealous.”

“Is your cabin O.K.? If it isn’t to your liking we could move you . . .”

“No, it’s wonderful. I’m sure I will be very comfortable there,” Ava interrupted. With that the group fell into their familiar pattern of joking, eating and talking about their plans for the weekend.

After dinner Wesley invited Ava to the recreation room with Naomi and Andre to compete in a virtual reality digital video game played in teams. Ava had only seen these types of games played watching the news back home and was delighted to be able to try one. The object of the game consisted mainly of pairs fighting their way through different jungle levels discovering clues, and weapons that eventually lead to the retrieval of a lost homing beacon which would signal a starship to rescue you. The difficulty rested in defeating the “aliens” that would try and capture or kill you during your mission.  If you were captured your partner had to try and rescue you in order to keep moving and progress through the level.  Naomi and Andre easily beat Ava and Wesley’s team because Ava kept being captured. After about an hour, Ava was exhausted and a little frustrated because she could not keep up with the others, try as she might. The others appeared to have super fast reflexes, or maybe they were just more experienced at playing the game. She had a great time and after a while it became a funny joke each time she was captured. The game was very active with a lot of running, jumping, climbing, and punching motions. The virtual reality part made it all seem eerily realistic and almost terrifying at times. The aliens appeared especially menacing. They were large, slimy, greenish brown creatures with long extremities and sharp claws. Their shrieking and growling noises started to disturb Ava after a while as she sometimes had nightmares involving aliens.

When they called it quits on the game Naomi and Andre left Ava with Wesley and they sank down onto the comfy couch to watch the news of whatever local station the ship could pick up. After a while, he escorted her back to her quarters to get some rest. Naomi had promised Ava a full day of shopping while the others completed their assignment. Ava washed her face, changed into her pajamas and set the alarm for 9:00 a.m. as Wesley had instructed her to relax and sleep in because they would not land until 10:00 a.m. The bed, although not much larger than what she was used to, felt much more comfortable. Ava usually had trouble adjusting and resting in beds that were not her own, however this time she found sleep just after her head touched the soft pillow.