Europa Mon Amour

Chapter 3

The crew compartment wheel’s rotation was not noticeable, and yet it provided some interesting illusions. When Marie and I ran around the wheel separated by half the circumference, I could look up and see her running upside down, and I’m sure that she saw the same when she looked up. Running is an important exercise for endurance and leg strength, something we would need when we ventured into Europa’s hidden ocean. It also gave us a chance to have some fun by running a race of sorts. At the end of a race when we were both bushed, we would fall down and laugh.

As tune went on I noticed that Marie began to climb out of the perpetual depression about her scar. My acceptance of her deformity allowed her to be her true self, a happy well adjusted teenager. She and I were gradually adjusting to the boredom of living on a ship in deep space.

We ate together at a food station. The small table, essentially a foldup plastic rectangle, pulled down from the wall and two stools could be raised out of the floor. A food dispenser built into the wall provided a few basic choices, mostly things sealed in plastic packages that could be heated in a small microwave.

“We’re scheduled for a conference with Earth Control,” I said as I munched on some re-heated veggies. “I don’t really have anyone to talk to. My parents are both deceased and I have no brothers or sisters.”

“That’s odd,” she said. “I only have my father, but he’s on assignment in Africa. Perhaps that’s another reason they chose us for this mission.”

“That’s a good point. We have no one to mourn us if we don’t return . . . except for your father in your case.”

She twisted her lips and batted her eyes. “That’s a cheery thought,” she said in a sarcastic manner.

“Unfortunately, it’s reality,” I said trying to avoid sounding depressed.

After lunch, we sat in the command station and ordered COMA to activate the main antenna so that it points toward Earth. We were around ninety million miles from Earth so that a signal took approximately eight minutes to travel one way.

The screen lit up with the image of a bubble headed bleach blond. “Good day, space travelers,” she said with a gleam in her eyes. We trust that everything is going well on board Delta-1.”

“Everything is going smoothly, according to COMA,” I said. “We are fine.” I glanced at Marie. “Right, Ms. Gonzalez?”

“I am quite well, thank you,” Marie said. “We are currently in training for the exploration phase of this mission. All systems connected with that phase check out with no problems.”

“Our ETA is four months and ten days,” I said.

We had to wait sixteen minutes for a reply. This delay would only get worse as we get closer to Jupiter.

“This delay is stupid,” Marie said. “It’s like having a conversation with a retard.”

I smiled to myself. “That’s Einstein’s fault. He’s the guy who set the speed limit for light.”

She rewarded me with a frown so I decided to remain silent until the transmission from Earth came in.

“We are glad to hear that everything is well,” the woman said. “Things are going well here. The sun is currently in a low activity phase of its eleven-year cycle. You should not have to deal with radiation emissions from flares at this time. We will send you an update if this situation changes.”

“Thank you,” I replied. “Unless there is a problem, we will contact you on schedule in one week.”

The screen went blank. A reply was unnecessary.

“You would think that they would have someone with technical expertise converse with us,” Marie said. “That woman is an air head.”

“They probably think that she’s good enough for the likes of us.”

She chuckled. “We’re just two kids in a very expensive piece of hardware like the monkeys that they used to shoot up into space at the beginning of the space race.”

I laughed. “At least we know how not to soil the capsule.”

She laughed, but her laughter subsided and we stared at one another for several minutes before I leaned over and kissed her. She responded by mashing her lips into mine for a much longer kiss.

“I’m sorry,” she said, blinking her eyes rapidly. “I got . . . “

“You have no need to apologize. We’re the only ones on this ship.”

She looked around. “Are you sure there aren’t surveillance cameras?”

“So what? What are they going to do, fire us?”

She smiled before turning to type something into the keyboard. Her message to COMA appeared on a screen. DOES THIS VESSEL HAVE SURVILLANCE CAMERAS, COMA?

The reply was terse: YES, MARIE.

I pointed at her and smirked. “You’re on Candid Camera.”

She gave me a smirk in return before typing: ARE THE SURVILLANCE RECORDINGS SENT BACK TO EARTH CONTROL, COMA?

COMA replied: NO, MARIE. THAT WOULD REQUIRE TOO MUCH POWER.

Marie flashed an ornery smile at me as much to say that she had discovered a green light for more fun and games. I acknowledged her discovery with a nod and a sly smile. We were two teens stuck together way out in deep space. What would happen between us was inevitable.