Alone in the night
29 Mar 2019Dixon-Phyre
Mikael stared out of the cockpit at the barren landscape. The Cobra sat atop of a cliff of ice, looking down into a rippled valley, delicately hued in pale blue. An M-class red dwarf cast its light, throwing the ripples into sharp relief. He sighed, took a swig of coffee from the flask and tapped the keyboard to his left."Recording," said the COVAS primly.
"I never thought I would do a voice log like this. But it occurred to me that it may be the only way to stay sane.
I'm over half way now. It's taking much longer than I thought. Mind you, there's some days I cannot be arsed. When the thought of scanning yet another world makes you feel sick. I wonder if all explorers get that after a while? Maybe it's just me...
When that feeling kicks in, I take to my bed. Sometimes for several days, until I suddenly get the motivation to carry on.
Talk about spur-of-the-moment decisions! Now that I know what I want to do with my pilot's life, my second chance, this seemed like the easiest way to get the necessary cash. So here I am, doing the 'five-k' as it is known - the distance required before the Prof down in Maia will let you into his workshop. I want that access because I want a fast ship. I've come to realise that part of being a good pilot is knowing when to run the hell away. And the money I should get...well, we will see. I spent a lot of time mapping at first, but that takes even more time! But I'm far out enough now to find undiscovered systems. And to know what to map, rather than everything.
Another sixty-odd jumps, and I'm there.
Then I have to turn round and fly all the way back again.
I've come too far to give up. Although that was never an option. But the loneliness is biting now. Makes you realise how much we need human contact, of any kind, to stay on the level. I talk to the ship, of course. It doesn't answer back or criticise you.
Shard is doing well. I know a lot of pilots will wait until they can afford a serious exploration ship before doing the five-k, or indeed any long journey. So maybe I'm crazy undertaking it in a humble Cobra, that isn't even particularly optimised for the job. AFM unit and a half-decent fuel scoop was as far as I went.
So onwards we go. Never get there if I sit here yakking."
He ended the recording. Finished the coffee. He took a deep breath and started the engines. Downthrust sent billowing clouds of vapourised ice around the ship as it lifted, rising up to a hundred metres or so. He pointed the nose straight up and sent Shard up into the black again.