Helping
Hands
Helping
Hands
Breakaway + 4 yrs, 8 months
On the way from the main Eagle hanger bay to Command Center, Alan Carter stopped by the Geology Lab to pick up his Flight ring… or what was left of it. He slipped the small package into his jacket pocket as he hustled to get to Command Center on time. He was scheduled to sit a watch at the Eagle Operations desk this shift.
Those selected for duty on Alpha had always been physically fit, except maybe for George Crato he chuckled, but since Breakaway they had all become even leaner thanks to their very low fat diet. There simply were very few sources of fat available. His Royal Australian Air Force flight ring had become too loose to wear. So, he had traded the opportunity to ride ‘tourist’ on a couple of scheduled maintenance flights for the time and talents of a gifted geology technician. She had recast and resized the ring for him. He’d show Sahn after she got back.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The water that had been brought back by Alan Carter and Bill Fraser from the purplish planet, promptly designated ‘Planet Barney’ by an American technician, was being filtered and purified at one of Alpha’s OutLabs. These laboratories were located a short Eagle flight from the base and were set up to be completely autonomous from Alpha. As head of Life Sciences, Dr. Helena Russell had insisted that there be no chance of contamination with Alpha’s water supply.
The filtration work had been going smoothly for the past two weeks, but yesterday a fault in the communication system had been noted and a request sent for a technician to repair the problem. When the work order had crossed Sandra Benes’s desk shortly before the end of yesterday’s shift, she thought she could, as Bill Fraser might say, ‘kill two birds with one stone.’ She had logged in the notation to add the technician to the next scheduled Eagle trip to deliver a relief crew and then had recorded herself as both pilot and service tech. There, that would help keep her flight time up to date.
So, it was no true surprise then, that when the next day’s Command Center duty roster was posted, one Alan Carter was listed as Eagle Ops officer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sandra landed Eagle 17 precisely in the center of the landing pad at OutLab 2. Maya smiled her approval from the other seat. She had just started flight lessons with Alan and could now appreciate the finesse it took to be so precise. Maya had been a last minute addition to the trip; she was curious to see the purification process.
“Nice landing, Sandra.” complemented Maya as she unfastened the restraints and got up. The orange spacesuit made her a bit clumsy, but was standard when flying to the remote lab sites.
After checking in with Alpha, Sandra powered down the Eagle and joined Maya in the passenger compartment. Making sure that the boarding tube was docked securely and the seal intact, Maya opened the door. They followed the relief team of environmental technicians Michael Rian and Kaitlyn Smythe down the corridor. As they moved underground, the wall changed from a typical Alphan wall to dressed moon rock. The humidity level went up perceptibly even as the temperature cooled. The smell of sulphur was strong; the legacy of Planet Barney.
“I will get started over here,” Sandra said and directed her attention to the communications hardware. The outgoing techs happily showed Maya the filtration and purification process. She was asking questions about the process when she noticed an odd smell, unusual even through the sulphur.
Michael Rian arrived at Maya’s side, newly changed into the much more flexible and comfortable work overalls. He noticed the pensive look on her face. “What’s wrong, Maya?”
She was rapidly putting together a series of observations, smells and half recalled memories from her Psychon science teachings. In a flash her thoughts crystallized. Maya realized the potential for disaster was eminent. She turned to the others and shouted, “Everyone out now! Run!” She waited for the startled technicians to start down the corridor and then pushed Sandra, who had waited for her, on ahead. “Go!”
When the explosion occurred, Sandra was still far from the door. She was thrown to the ground with Michael landing heavily on top of her and knocking the wind out. She did not, quite, lose consciousness. In the resulting near darkness, there was silence except for the dripping of water and the sparking of electrical wires. The smell of sulphur was strong.
“Sorry, Sahn, you alright?” Michael asked as he felt the back of his head. There was blood where a piece of flying debris had apparently grazed him. He knelt beside her offering a helping hand.
“Alright,” she gave a reassuring smile as she took the offered hand. Her spacesuit and Michael’s body had saved her from the worst damage. “Where are Maya and Kaitlyn, and the others?” she asked, peering through the gloom.
There was a familiar cascade of light from under a pile of wreckage. “I’m over here,” answered the Psychon emerging disheveled and dust-covered from behind a large piece of pre-fab wall that had been knocked loose. She was returning her commlock to her belt. “I believe that the others just made it out beyond…” she motioned towards the corridor. The emergency bulkhead had slammed shut.
As he stood and tried to get his bearings in the gloom, Michael stepped back into a puddle of spilled water. Maya saw the downed wire, but a second too late. “Michael, No!”
Sandra turned in time to see Michael fly back and land in a heap. He lay deathly still. Sandra grabbed a plastic pole and pushed the wire away. After making sure there were no additional power lines down, she moved over to Michael and rolled him over. “There is no pulse, Maya.” She started chest compressions as Maya scrambled back over to the downed piece of wall which held the med kit and defibrillator.
Maya recalled from Helena’s first aid courses that cardiac standstill commonly happened after electrocution. The large, heavy, pre-fab wall piece was wedged at such an angle as to keep Maya from reaching the med kit. She muttered a Psychon curse. Michael was running out of time. Thinking quickly, she shifted into a small spotted lemur-like creature, but with a cranium size that suggested much greater intelligence, and scooted under and around the wall to reach the med kit. Finally, success. “Got it,” she panted as she hunched down next to Sandra. They got the work-jumper open and off Michael’s chest
Working as a coordinated team and blessing all the drills that Helena insisted upon, Maya opened and placed the sensor patch over Michael’s heart. The small back-lit monitor showed what they expected: fibrillation. Confirming that Sandra was clear and that there was no obvious standing water, Maya pressed the button to give the needed shock. Three shocks later, a normal rhythm had been established. Both women sagged with relief, but only briefly.
“He’s not breathing.” Sandra grabbed the ventilation bag and mask and started pushing air into Michael’s lungs. There was a small portable oxygen tank somewhere, but they could not find it in the chaos and gloom. Gratefully, room air seemed to be sufficient for now. After bagging for a few minutes, Michael seemed to be trying to breathe on his own, just a little. As long as they helped Michael to breath, his color looked good. Both women, again, felt a moment of relief.
Unexpectedly, a shower of sparks erupted by the closed bulkhead. Maya and Sandra startled and looked up in surprise. A power conduit had taken that moment to lose its hold and drop into a small ruptured reservoir of not-yet purified water. The high salt content made it a powerful conductor of electricity. Neither Maya nor Sandra could think of any means around it to get to the closed bulkhead. The emergency switch to turn off all power was unreachable, even to Maya.
Discouraged but determined, they regrouped and took stock of their surroundings. They realized that the damage was extensive: emergency power only, temperature dropping quickly, Michael was stabilized for now, but may need more help soon, and it appeared that communications was knocked out. On the positive side, they did have atmosphere.
“Maya, do you still have your commlock? Mine is missing.”
“Yes, but I have already tried. It isn’t working.”
“Let me see.”
Working together by the light of the defibrillator monitor, and taking turns bagging Michael, they managed to jury-rig Maya’s commlock with the main communications board and got it to work, if only briefly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All was quiet in Command Center. The flight to OutLab 2 and a training flight launched on schedule and Sandra had confirmed her safe arrival. Alan leaned back in his chair while keeping an eye on his monitors and trying to figure out a way to twit Tony on Maya’s desire to fly. In an Eagle, that is. Then again, Tony had been touchy of late. He and Maya seemed to be on excellent terms, but maybe he should check with Alibe first. She was always a good source of info.
He looked over to the data analysis tech in question and noticed that there was a frown on her face.
“Commander, I’ve lost all contact with OutLab 2,” Alibe reported.
“Any signs of other problems?” asked Koenig
“No, sir.”
“Well, Sahn was going to work on their communications array, maybe the ‘glitch’ is causing problems,” Alan shrugged in Koenig’s direction.
“Maybe,” Koenig wasn’t convinced. Something wasn’t right. “Alibe, try to reach them on their commlocks.”
Alibe spent the next ten minutes attempting to reach the OutLab team on their commlocks as well as attempting to boost a message through Eagle 17’s communication net. Finally, she picked up a scratchy, faint message. Sandra’s voice could be heard fading in and out over the static filled line:
“Moonbase Al….. There has……explosion….powerline down……water…. Mi….hurt….. temperature drop…..” Communication was then lost.
Alan’s head whipped around to make eye contact with Koenig. All semblance of his usual laid-back manner gone.
Koenig nodded, “Go.”
The Command Center team slipped into action; almost simultaneously the orders
were given to summon help:
“We have an emergency, Miriam, Rescue Eagle 12 to Pad 1.”
“Rescue team to Pad 1, bring excavation gear.”
“Medical Center. There has been an explosion at OutLab 2. We need a trauma team to Pad 1.
Alan looked at Tony, “Coming?” and they both stood and ran out to join the team assembling on Pad 1.
Although Koenig doubted both men were needed he didn’t even think to call one back. If Helena were entrapped there he knew nothing would keep him here. Carter was simply the best pilot to fly into a potential disaster zone and Verdeschi would be more useful and focused if he were helping in the rescue. Especially if Maya were hurt. Thinking through the logistics, he realized that a second pilot would be needed to move Sandra’s Eagle off the OutLab pad to allow the Rescue Eagle to hook up with the boarding tube. That landing pad was simply too small to allow two Eagles side to side access. Alan had probably already realized that when he included Tony. Koenig took Alan’s place at the Eagle Ops desk to monitor the rescue.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I hope the others managed to get far enough out,” said Sandra taking her turn bagging Michael. Maya was carefully walking around the lab searching for any opportunity that they had overlooked.
“I know. But even if they did, they’re trapped also. Our only pilot is on this side of the door.” And with that thought, and nothing else helpful to add, Maya took her turn at bagging Michael allowing Sandra to rest her hands.
Rescue would certainly come, but how long would it take?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The rescue team assembled quickly, the result of too much practice over the years. Tony and Alan helped each other with their suit checks, dropped their visors and slid into the pilot seats. Pre-launch checks were completed in record time and the Eagle was ready to lift. Drs. Helena Russell and Ed Spencer along with two nurses and the three rescue team members and their supplies were crowded into the rescue pod that had been modified into a mobile trauma bay. All had suited up and pulled visors down engaging life-support. They were counting on Sandra’s Eagle 17 to be functional to help transport everyone back to Alpha, but if it wasn’t, Koenig would send another Eagle.
Neither man said much beyond the necessary as Alan flew the Eagle to OutLab 2, concentrating on what had to be done and worrying about the unthinkable. Alan brought Eagle 12 down on the moon’s surface next to the OutLab’s pad.
Although Eagle 17’s telemetry indicated all systems were nominal, and the Eagle’s exterior cameras saw no obstacles, there was no way to know the status of the docking tube still attached to the Eagle, and whether survivors were trapped within it. It was safer to check in person.
Tony turned to Alan and said via suit radios, “I’ll move that Eagle out of the way and then join you inside. Helena’s already depressurized.”
“Right,” Alan acknowledged.
It took some juggling of suited bodies, but Tony’s exit was accomplished quickly, though not quickly enough for him. He was focused on crossing the lunar surface to the OutLab. He would get the Eagle out of the way so that the rescue teams could move in and get to Maya, and the others.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Their eyes had adjusted to the dim light. The temperature continued to drop. They had moved Michael onto a pile of work overalls and covered him with his spacesuit to try to keep him warm. Except for helping Michael, there was little to do but wait. It was Sandra’s turn.
After ten minutes of bagging, Sandra paused to kneel down by Michael and looked at him closely. As best as she could tell in this light, his color remained poor and his respirations seemed shallow. Maya took the next turn bagging air into Michael. Sandra rubbed one aching hand with the other. Her hands were really too small to hold the mask on his face and squeeze that bag easily, but she would continue to take her turn until help arrived.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Come on, come on,” Alan waited impatiently, clenching and unclenching his hands on the controls, as Tony attempted to enter the emergency airlock into OutLab 2. For a few minutes, all that could be heard over the suit comms was Tony’s panting breaths as he struggled to turn the manual opening latch. Helena sat next to Alan in the front of the Eagle and was more patient, perhaps, from practice, but no less anxious. She dreaded what might be found.
“Got it!” Tony called as the outer door finally opened. He crossed into the small room and started the process of closing and pressurizing the portal. At least he hoped it would pressurize. If it didn’t, that meant that there was no air inside and that was unthinkable for Tony. The light by the door finally indicated green and he pushed open the inner seal with difficulty. There was debris everywhere he saw with despair.
Tony’s monitor showed the air was breathable and he cracked open his helmet. It was rich in sulphur and tinged with ozone. Through the gloom hazy with rock dust he saw nothing move, and a quick search did not reveal any Alphans in the area. His next job was to get that Eagle off the pad and make way for the others. “Atmosphere’s intact, Alan, but no one’s here” reported Tony as he made his way across the littered space over to the boarding tunnel. The debris even extended down into the docking tube. He scrambled over debris praying that the boarding tube was not damaged and that he could get it disengaged from the Eagle.
“Alan, there is a hell of a lot of damage in here. I can’t see well. We’re going to need auxiliary lighting.”
“Check,” replied Alan and relayed the message back to the rescue team.
Tony finally managed to scramble over the last obstruction and walked quickly down the rest of the boarding tube. The Eagle looked intact. He boarded and hit the switch to close the doors and disengage the tube, but then stopped its withdrawal about five meters off. Alan would have to land precisely on-spot, but this would hopefully minimize the risk of the tube becoming jammed in the debris. Tony ran the briefest of pre-flights and with a roar of power launched the Eagle in record time.
“Hang on Helena, we’re off,” warned Alan as he lifted the Eagle and finessed it over to exactly the needed location. The boarding tube was summoned and docked without incident. As soon as the door opened, the team exited to find and retrieve lost friends.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sandra thought, for a second, that she had felt the vibrations of an Eagle’s engines. She hoped so.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Everyone remained suited up for safety. The rescue team took the lead with powerful torches and rock moving gear. Helena followed with her trauma team carefully searching all the nooks and crannies for the missing. Alan stayed behind by the airlock for Tony to make the second trip over the lunar surface, standing by in case of emergency. He kept glancing between the view outside and the rescue team, desperately wanting to help search. To stay occupied, he checked in with Alpha. “We’re in John, and it’s a mess. It must have been one hell of a blow. Bulkheads are down and we’re working on clearing them. Atmosphere’s intact, but we’ve found no one yet.”
“Understood,” acknowledged Koenig. “Any sign of what happened?”
“Not yet. Here’s Tony. We’ll check in again in 15 minutes.”
Tony finally cycled through the airlock again, clearly exhausted from his efforts.
“Good job, you alright?” asked Alan, clapping him on the back. Tony nodded, bent over, hands on his thighs. After a minute, the two men joined the others to help shift the downed debris.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Michael’s color looked better and he was finally breathing on his own. Sandra sat down near Maya and tried to make herself comfortable against the rock wall. She saw Maya studying her with a question on her face. “Go ahead Maya, ask your question. Maybe it will help to pass the time.”
Maya still paused for a minute. “Have you and Alan ever discussed having a child?”
Sandra stilled and looked at Maya. That was probably just about the last thing she expected. But in a community as small as Alpha, little remained secret for long. “Yes, and the next answer is also ‘yes,’ we are trying. Helena has given the okay.”
Maya looked embarrassed but continued. This was obviously very important to her. “If you are unable to conceive a child by Alan, would you ask another man to father the child?”
The question took Sandra by surprise but she reasoned that there must be a logic to it. “I do not know,” she answered honestly. “But Alpha needs children and we need the greatest genetic diversity possible, so maybe, yes.” She didn’t add that she really wanted children.
“What would Alan think?”
Sandra had to pause and consider. “I am not sure, but he does love children and wants to be a father. If he could raise the child as his own he would probably be agreeable,” although Sandra was far from certain. “Maya, why these questions and why now?” Sandra asked, turning the question back on the questioner. She noticed that the Psychon’s blue eyes were bright, even in the dim light.
Maya took a deep breath. “Humans and Psychons are genetically very similar. Too similar for coincidence, really. I have wondered if those ancient Arkadians seeded more than just Earth. Helena has done genetic profiles and feels that Tony and I should be able to have children, but even without contraceptives I have never conceived. Not even once. And there’s no medical reason why I shouldn’t.” Maya took another deep breath and looked away. “At my request Helena checked the possibility of my having children with another, and…”
Putting together things she had half overheard and Maya’s obvious distress, Sandra made an intuitive guess: “Magus.” Maya nodded miserably. Sandra thought back to that strange alien who had tried, in essence, to breed research assistants. He had failed abysmally, mostly by ignoring human and Psychon emotions. “Has Magus made it impossible for you and Tony to …” Sandra trailed off, thinking about Helena and the Commander.
“Helena suspects so.”
“But you could by the Commander?”
“Or any other Alphan she thinks.”
“Oh, dear.” And that, thought Sandra, was the understatement of the century. To buy time to think she again checked on Michael. He looked okay.
‘Have you told Tony?” Sandra asked settling next to Maya who looked absolutely miserable.
“Not yet. I don’t know how. He can be very…. protective.” Maya finished lamely.
“The correct word is jealous.”
Maya looked resigned. “He need not be. I’ve told him that before. We are pair-bonded, married.”
“Marriages can fail, Maya.”
“Not with Psychons.”
Sandra looked up, “No?”
“We mate for life. Like your Terran geese.” Sandra suppressed a small smile. Tony might not appreciate that analogy. Maya continued, “If the bonding is very strong, not even death dissolves it. That was what it was like for my parents. It was one reason why my father would not leave Psychon. Tony and I have that kind of bond. I felt it almost from the beginning.”
“Like empathy?”
“No, I don’t feel his emotions, more like a ‘resonance.’ Psychons can search for years without finding it. We know for sure,” and now Maya did blush, “after we make love. Once you find your partner, no other pair-bonding is possible.”
“Does Tony know this?”
“I’ve tried to explain, but I’m unsure. At first, I didn’t realize humans could not feel the bonding.” Maya’s face now reflected her anxiety, “and I didn’t realize until now that ‘marriages’ could fail.”
“Tony is devoted to you, Maya. You just had to know him before to realize that. I think his jealousy is really fear that you might leave him. Some men need a lot of reassurance.”
“Alan doesn’t seem jealous.”
“Different personality, different culture, different man.”
It was Maya’s turn to check on Michael. He still seemed okay but his persistent unconsciousness was worrisome.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The first bulkhead opened to only moderate effort. They were immediately met with cries of relief from two of the survivors. Kaitlyn was mercifully unconscious. Helena and Ed Spencer quickly assessed her. The open fracture of her mangled leg was obvious as were the abrasions on her forehead. Med scanners indicated a concussion but otherwise no internal damage. Spencer and one of the nurses transferred the patient to a pallet and, with the help of the two other environmental techs, moved back to the trauma bay.
Helena reported back to Command Center. “John, we have three survivors so far. Kaitlyn Smythe is unconscious but stable. We are still looking for Maya, Sandra and Michael.”
“We’re starting on the second bulkhead, Commander,” added a rescue tech as he positioned heavy rescue equipment. Unfortunately, this door seemed jammed tight. Sensors could not read any life signs, but there was an electrical interference that may have been the cause. An hour later, little progress had been made.
To cover his mounting anxiety, Tony focused on rigging a camera so Command Center could follow the events. Alan looked at Helena with haunted eyes. He was truly happy and content with Sandra. To have that ripped away so soon would probably break his spirit. Helena returned Alan’s look with compassion. If Sandra did not make it, she doubted she would ever tell him the news she had yet to even tell Sandra.
The thick rock walls continued to prevent access to those trapped within.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It had become bone-chillingly cold. The women had stuffed Michael as best they could back in to his space suit for warmth. It limited how well they could monitor him, but it would all be for naught if he froze to death. Then, replacing their gloves and helmets, they again settled to wait. The air was becoming musty, but as it still seemed to circulate sluggishly they saved their suit air for later.
“I wonder how long it has been,” Sandra asked rhetorically.
“Three hours, fifty-five minutes,” replied Maya without thinking. “Sorry.”
“I wish Michael would wake up. I am worried that his head injury may be more severe than we thought,” Sandra worried. More time passed, each woman in her own thoughts.
“Sandra, what was Paul Morrow like? No one ever speaks of him, but his is the name on many of the reports filed after Breakaway.”
Sandra sighed. This had become a day of difficult conversations. “He was a good man and very loyal to the Commander until just at the end. But, he hurt many people’s feelings very badly. He broke trust with a lot of people. Alan felt especially hurt. He had counted Paul a friend, I think. That is why little is said.”
Maya watched Sandra’s face. There was something being left unsaid and she waited patiently.
“I loved him.”
It was so cold.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They had resorted to setting explosive charges. It was a calculated gamble, especially given that they did not completely understand what had caused the initial explosion. One of the rescue techs speculated that there may have been unknown compounds that reacted with the purification process. There had seemed to be a funny odor in the air when they had first arrived. Maya would probably know. The tech shot a quick glance at the Security Chief.
Finally, five hours ten minutes after the initial call for help there was a crack in the thick wall. With a renewed burst of energy the men opened a small tunnel just wide enough for a suited body to crawl through. Procedure called for the environment to be assessed before sending anyone in. Procedure be damned. Visors down, Tony crawled through closely followed by Alan with Helena. The sparking of the downed conduit was seen almost too late. Alan grabbed Tony and pulled back the determined man. “Tony, wait,” Alan pointed to the danger. With a curse, Tony stopped. He called over the suit radio to have all power to the OutLab completely turned off. What little light was present shut off abruptly.
“Pass us the small torches,” ordered Tony. It was very, very cold and dark. Nothing moved except the eddies in the hazy air caused by the new arrivals.
“The air is breathable,” said Helena after checking her monitor. She raised her visor and sniffed. “Phew.”
Alan had already started searching, mostly by feel. “Sandra! Maya!” His foot bumped against something soft. He fell to his knees and felt along the suited body. “Helena, over here. It’s Michael and he isn’t breathing too well.” Tony and a rescue tech shined lights toward Alan’s voice and Helena quickly moved that way calling for her nurse to bring the intubation kit.
Alan moved beyond Michael and Helena where a glimmer of orange had caught his eye. “Tony, they’re over here.” Tony shined his light in the direction and hurried to Alan’s side.
“They’re unconscious but alive,” he told Tony, who could verify the same by the foggy exhaled air in front of each still face. They each scooped up a cold body and headed back to the exit. With some effort, all three unconscious bodies were finally passed through to the outer corridor and from there it was a quick trip to the waiting Eagle and trauma team.
Standing by the door to the Rescue Eagle, a suited Dr. Ed Spencer waited. After the emergency surgery to stabilize and reduce Kaitlyn’s broken leg, Spencer had re-suited and remained alert, prepared and waiting. He had refused all offers to return to Alpha.
The hypothermia victims were laid on tables and basic resuscitation measures started. During the next hectic ten minutes, Helena had little attention to spare for anyone but her patients. Tony and Alan watched from the door to the Eagle, each saying a prayer in his own fashion.
Spencer finally stopped and looked at Helena.
She smiled.
The multiply redundant life support systems designed by Professor Victor Bergman had once again proved their worth.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After verifying for himself that Maya was improving, Tony made one last trip across the lunar surface to Eagle 17 and then picked up the exhausted rescue team before returning to Alpha
Eagle 12’s flight back to Alpha was one of the smoothest Alan had ever executed.
Maya and Sandra woke up on the flight back. Except for bad cases of shivers, the two women were fine. Michael was still intubated and unconscious, but stable. Helena suspected he would be alright with time. She had been impressed by the cardiac resuscitation and suspected that the hypothermia might paradoxically actually have helped him survive the damage of the electrocution until rescue.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There was organized chaos as Michael and Kaitlyn were evacuated from Eagle12. “Consider yourself on medical leave until I re-examine you in the morning,” Helena said to Sandra. Then, with an understanding nod, Helena left with Maya to accompany the survivors to Medical Center. Sandra stayed behind on the Eagle. Alan had already stored his helmet and life support pack and was waiting, leaning on the door jam from the flight deck, for everyone to clear out. Once the way was clear, he walked over to Sandra and wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her head, closing his eyes with raw relief. It wasn’t the most comfortable hug for Sandra, but she also needed the tactile reassurance. He finally whispered, “Don’t scare me like that.” Eventually his usual sense of the absurd prevailed and he said with a tightening of his arms and a smile, “Hey, Alpha can’t afford to lose its brand new third officer.” Then, suddenly, he shivered in reaction to the fear he had just lived through. He tilted Sandra’s face up to his and with a voice filled with emotion added, “and I can’t afford to lose you.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Back on Alpha proper, Alan and Sandra wearily walked hand in hand to the pilots’ ready-room to peel out of their suits. Tony and Maya were expected along shortly. The adrenaline surge Alan had been living on for the last few hours ebbed and he sunk slowly down onto a bench. Sandra joined him, just as tired. Had it only been seven hours since he had picked up the package from Geology? He turned to look at Sandra who sat with her head resting against the wall, eyes closed and her forgotten helmet in her lap. He had to grin, she was so very small; she looked like a child dressed up and playing spaceman. Alan sobered. A spaceman who had just survived an explosion in an underground cavern, survived nearly being frozen to death, and still helped to save an electrocuted mate. He reached out to wipe a smudge of dirt off her forehead, but that only made it worse. Sandra opened her eyes to look at him. Alan looked into her beautiful, but very tired, brown eyes. “Have I ever told you how sexy you are in orange?”
Even as tired as she was, Sandra had to laugh at that. “Yes, certainly, and covered with rock dust and stinking of sulphur from that purple water.”
Alan laughed with her. He pulled his blue jacket out of his locker and fished around in the pocket until he found the small package.
He picked up her left hand and taking the smaller of the two rings, slipped the wedding band on her fourth finger.
It fit.
MGK