Lost in Space: In the Shadow of Stars

Chapter 33

 It was shortly after noon, the sun was warm, the sky was cloudless and there was a complete lack of wind. The whole scene was like something out of a fairy tale. Thanks to the absence of clouds, the sun's rays had no problem reaching the ground and embracing everything in their path. From the crowns of strange trees of different color combinations to the smallest blades of grass. From birds with curved beaks and long feathers to spiny mouse lizards hiding from the warm rays in the small bushes growing all around. The rays fell on the local fauna, and flora, and even on small dug-out holes, indicating that some plants had recently grown there but had been dug up. They fell on the still-glowing embers in the campfire and on trampled tracks all around it. They also landed on two large objects which, not only in size but also in color, simply did not fit in with the local scenery, and of which there would soon be nothing left but a trace in the ground. Just a passing memory, soon to be washed away by the rain and quickly forgotten by this planet.

"The main systems are within the norm, the secondary systems have only a small deviation. Don, what about fuel?" John asked, watching the screen in front of him. The pilot's chair allowed him to transfer all the information to his console, but he preferred to be able to focus only on a few things. Plus, it was better to have other heads to check. Four eyes see more than one, he thought.

"Pressure and temperature are fine, the fuel pipes aren't leaking, and I don't smell fire whiskey," Don, sitting behind him, replied, taking a few more breaths through his nose. "No, no whiskey."
"Fire whiskey?" Maureen asked from her copilot's position, glancing with amusement at the mechanic sitting to her left. Don grinned at her and pointed a finger at his nose.

"The adulterant in the fuel sometimes reminds me of whiskey I used to smug... I mean, resell in Rio de Janeiro," he replied evasively. "It was a new edition that tasted sweet and smelled like a burning campfire. It was in great demand, but the idiots soon stopped making it because it made some people sick."
"I'm not surprised," Maureen, who hated the smell and taste of whiskey, muttered. "Running diagnostics on the support systems," she announced, running a check on her dashboard. There was a brief hiss, several lights flashed, and lights all over the ship turned off and on.

"I see a little surge in the lighting subsystem here, but otherwise good? Can you confirm Maureen?" John looked at his wife.
"Cabin pressure is good, we don't seem to have any holes in the hull, at least for now. The temperature is a comfortable twenty-two degrees and yes, I can see the lighting system is a little weird, but that shouldn't bother us. What about communications, John?"

"Hmm," John grumbled, running a brief diagnostic over the comm system again. "The system is running at one hundred percent, but until we have someone to contact, I won't tell you if it's working."
Maureen laughed. "Well, it's a good thing we're not alone on this planet," she uttered, pressing a button beside her. "This is Jupiter thirteen, Argelo can you hear me?"
There was a brief silence. Maureen frowned, and her husband gave her a surprised look. "Could there be a bug after all?"

"I repeat, this is Jupiter Thirteen. Argelo this is Maureen, do you read us?"
Nothing happened for another five seconds, but then some weird buzzing noise echoed in Jupiter's cabin.
"...ear you... someth... rong... ," Argelo answered her jerkily. But then the interference stopped and he laughed. "Sorry Maureen, yes I can hear you."
John and Don laughed at the stupid joke and Maureen skipped it with a simple "Men."

"Roger, thanks, we're ready to go," she said, leaving the comm channel open.
"Understood, I'll be right behind you as planned," Argelo replied to her.
"Great Argelo, we're starting our final check and that's the crew check," John replied and turned his head back. The door to the HUB, like all the other doors on the ship, was closed so he had to use the internal radio to communicate with the people in the HUB.