CLAVIUS BASE—Day 42
The six-pack bounced over the lunar surface at twenty-five miles an hour. Dust kicked up by the wheels floated back to the ground. Metal mesh covered the passenger area, and a reinforced roll bar outlined the enclosure, permitting safe driving at such breakneck speeds to and from
Clancy watched as Shen, sitting next to him, checked the radar-guided autopilot. “Forty-five minutes to cross the plain,” she said. “Empty as a bureaucrat’s head. All this nothingness reminds me of traveling across Nevada. Ever been there?”
“I flew into Vegas once.”
“You haven’t died of boredom then. There’s a stretch of highway between Utah and California that goes straight for a hundred friggin’ miles—no towns, cows, or anything else.”
“No cows here, either.”
“Good point.”
They sat in silence for some moments. Clancy had a feeling Shen wanted to ask him something; she finally broke the silence. “Were you serious about needing a celestial mechanics expert?”
“Yeah.”
“And you can’t use my help?”
“Not for the question I have in mind. I’ll ask Rockland when we get back to base.”
After a moment of contemplation, Shen spoke up again. “Okay, what gives?”
Clancy chewed it over in his mind. The idea seemed so crazy. Maybe bouncing it off someone would give him a new angle to show that he was wrong.
Through the front shield he saw the flat span of crater, broken only by shuttle tracks from the once-a-day run to and from the Bigeye excavation site.
“I need a minimum-energy orbit from L-5 to the Moon.”
He couldn’t see much of Shen’s expression behind the coated visor, but her voice sounded perplexed. “What for?”
“An orbit from L-5 to here. You know, connect the dots.”
“Yeah, I heard that part the first time. But why? There’s no reason for a min orbit. You can’t get anything from them without a good enough guidance system, unless you’re thinking of having them do the Filipino wall-kelp bit. Or we could throw rocks up at them with the mass launcher, but that method is configured to use a relay station at L-2.”
“That’s why I need a celestial mechanics expert. I don’t even want to blab my idea until I know if it can work. But I think it will.”
“Boy, I thought I changed gears fast.” Shen turned her helmet to one side. “Go ahead and tell me. I’ll keep my trap shut.”
Clancy stared out at the lunar landscape. “Remember, I’ve still got to check this out, details and everything.” Taking a deep breath, he started to explain.
The six-pack bounced, causing Clancy to grab onto his seat as he spoke. Shen checked the instruments to confirm they were still on course. Clancy felt embarrassed. “I know it’s kind of crazy—”
“It’s great!”
“But let me check it out first, okay? I don’t want people to get their hopes up.”
Shen’s voice came over the radio, sobered. “There’s something even bigger on the line than people’s hopes.”
“What’s that?”
“Your credibility.”
His footsteps echoed in the empty tunnels. Light fixtures splashed shadows at angles on the smooth-bore walls. Duncan McLaris found the walk enthralling, vigorous.
He knew that walking was supposed to be better exercise than running—he’d gain the same aerobic benefits but without destroying his knees, ankles, and feet in the meantime. Not that he should worry so much in the low lunar gravity anyway. Lately, he’d taken to walking the length of the colony—five miles in all, counting the new section of tunnels that contained the wall-kelp.
Most people stayed out of the kelp tunnels, but McLaris loved the feeling of being alone in the caves. It marked a turning point in his life—a return to grace and full restoration of his inner being. The twisted path he had taken to get here, the wrong turns, the dead ends—it was a lot like his life.
He felt the thickening beard on his chin. It was stiff and prickly, but it had passed the itching stage. He couldn’t imagine himself without it when he looked in the mirror now. He hadn’t shaved since the
He hadn’t been able to build himself back up until now—until Chief Administrator Tomkins had showed faith in him. The crux of it all lay in the new tunnels, the paths that led in different directions away from darkness.
The sound of an electric cart came from behind him. McLaris stepped over to the edge of the tunnel and allowed the vehicle to whir past. Moments later he turned toward the administrative offices and the brighter lights. As he entered the office complex, two people rose from their chairs to greet him—Dr. Clancy and one of his crew.
