Void

[27] Protostar

Chapter 27 - Protostar: Dense regions of molecular clouds where stars form.

Anne

I stare into the dark heart of the Curlicue. Shiny metal casings that hum as a heartbeat and a dozen or so sleek tubes that serve as veins. I feel it through the floor, my boots, and in my own chest where it tries to mimic my heartbeat like its own, attempting to close the gap between man and machine.

Cedric notices my intrigue. "That takes the solar energy, harnesses it, and pumps it through the station. It's dangerous, a kind of radioactive isotope, I think. Chemistry isn't our profession, so Cece and I don't mess with it."

"So it's not what we're looking for?" Ed asks.

"We're looking for fuel, just enough to get ourselves out of trouble. That means getting close enough to Earth to get caught in its gravity, maybe."

"What's this fuel look like?"

"Like," His eyes scan the room before falling on haphazardly stacked tanks. "That!" Breaking into a run, he counts them and scans their labels all while a grin creeps across his face.

I read the labels on the shiny casings. "Liquid hydrogen and oxygen?"

They're huge, all piled into a small, dark corner of the room. It looks like an avalanche occurred, the way they're scattered.

"There must've been a backup supply, something for emergencies." Cedric laughs. "This'll work. It's perfect!"

But there's something more than the Curlicue's heartbeat that feels off to me. "This is wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"We have to assume that NOVA or the SSRC or whoever covered all their tracks. It's kept us alive so far, so what's wrong with this picture? When do we find a perfect fuel source holed up on the station?"

"Could this be a little bit of paranoia?" Ed steps forward, brows raised. "Is it impossible to assume that we just happened to catch a break this once?"

I turn away from his pitying look. "Don't look at me like that, just hear me out. It could be a trap." I make eye contact with Cedric. "Can we test what's inside?"

He gives an awkward shrug. "Like I said, not a chemist."

"Anne," Ed says, his tone short. "Let's take it and fuel the ship. It's not like we have any other rocket fuel alternatives."

"Do you really want to risk it all now?" I scold. "We're cut down by half, I'm not gonna watch another one of us go, especially not all of us at the same time! The ship can wait."

"You don't need to remind me who we lost, I was almost one of them!" He fumes, eyes wide. "We take the fuel and run or we wait for a slow death by pretending that someone is coming. We won't last the month Anne, you've done the math! So use that skill they put you on here for and give us some other bright ideas!"

I can feel my heartbeat quickening, matching that aggravating mechanical hum. I lean forward so that my eyes are inches from his. "I'm the appointed 'Captain' of this station, and while we're still floating in uncharted nothingness and we're still breathing, I'm going to keep us that way. This fuel is too dangerous, we'll find another way."

I watch his jaw clench and unclench. "I don't wanna fight you Anne, but we don't have the time or the resources to find something else. If we're destined to go out, we 're dead already. Either way, someone will have to answer for it back on Earth."

"That's not good enough for me." I take a step back. "You really think that way?"

"Yes."

From where Cedric has been standing and watching, he clears his throat. "I, um, memorized the blueprints, and unless this is another ghost room like the Computer's, this area wasn't here before."

I blink, twice. "What?"

He holds up a portable device. "This shows the big radioactive thing right here, but not this side where the tanks are. See?"

Ed gets a better look. "He's right."

The tension in the room dissolves momentarily. "So," I feel my shoulders drop and I exhale deeply. "What does it mean?"

"The way I see it, it's a fifty-fifty chance." Cedric mumbles, hands in his jumpsuit.

"How's that?"

"Well," He points to Ed. "If these tanks are from the SSRC, they're a stockpile for us to use." His finger moves to me. "But if these are from NOVA, then we won't make it past the airlock."

Ed fixes his steady gaze on me. "Captain?"

The weight on my shoulders has been a constant reminder of how far we are from home. I rub my eyes, my dark circles. From behind closed eyelids, I see the fields outside my home and watch their colors blend in the breeze. I breathe in thinking it will smell of pine trees and autumn, but it tastes like metal and recycled air. I'm tired of it all. "Those are the best odds we've had. Load it up."

---

I squirm in my seat as the screen in front of me informs it's establishing the connection. Why am I so nervous to meet him? The very thought of talking with someone on Earth seems alien, and a part of it all seems like a fantasy. The little progress bar slowly crawls to 100%.

"You're Anne, right?" The kid asks as a greeting.

I gaze at the screen like it's a living, breathing miracle because it is. He's younger than I pictured.

"Right?" Harris asks again.

I snap myself out of it, but it's difficult. I feel like I haven't seen another human who wasn't aboard the Curlicue in years. "Yes, sorry. Nice to meet you."

"Sure," His eyes flicker across the room. "Where's the crew?"

"All working on the ship, it's just us today."

He shifts in his chair. "Oh."

"What? Something wrong?"

He covers his cheeks with his hands. "I've never been alone with a girl."

"There are a couple hundred miles between us, Harris, don't get too excited."

He chuckles lightly. "Right, so I... I already emailed some flight pattern information to Oliver, and I'm still researching NOVA. They're pretty clean so far, but I'll keep at it."

"Thanks, Harris. You don't know what this means to us."

"You're lives, I suppose?" He half-smiles heartfully. "I can't imagine, but I'll try." After a few moments, he looks awkwardly around him, keeping himself busy during the pause by typing randomly at his keyboard. Finally, he clears his throat. "So, when do you think your flight is departing?"

"Any day now. This week hopefully."

"Really?" He whispers to himself. "Do you think... do you think we all could meet in person? Once this is all over?"

I shift forward in my chair. "Of course." I watch his eyes light up and immediately, my throat goes dry. "Hey, Harris?"

"Yep?"

"You know, we're not out of the water yet, right?"

"What do you mean? You're leaving this week."

"Yeah, but," I swallow hard. I try not to think about his age, how invested he is in this. "Things still have the possibility of going wrong. There's no guarantee here. There could be another attack, maybe a problem with the ship, we might never even reach Earth. And even then, we could be lost in the middle of nowhere with nothing."

His eyes fill up. "Oh God."

"But we're going to try. Everything." I reassure him with a smile. "We have to meet our hero."

He nods solemnly and checks the time. "The connection's going to terminate, Anne."

I place my hand on the screen. "See you next time then. Maybe even in person."

He reaches out towards me as the screen goes black.