Constellations' Child

14

We walk with Leo and Crater for several minutes before reaching a large steel door, bolted shut. A sign on the center reads, "Danger High Voltage."

Leo retracts the bolts. "A couple of you grab that handle; I'm too old."

Grus and I pull with our full body weight. Slowly, the door squeaks open. It's completely dark inside, but I can make out the contours of something large and spherical in the center of the room, a good fifty feet away.

Fluorescent lights buzz to life, revealing a large, mostly empty room with a high ceiling and concrete walls and floor. In the center, a circular, elevated platform, upon which rests a large, glass sphere.

"Well would you look at that!" Crater approaches the sphere like it's an old friend. "You've kept her in good shape all these years, Leo."

"I've kept the simulator in excellent condition all these years," an unfamiliar voice replies. "Leo just keeps the lights on."

We all turn. The woman who'd entered looks like she just stepped off Gemini. Wearing the grey flight suit of senior Constellations officials, the bars on her uniform signify an astonishing number of light years. Tall, with blonde hair in a tight bun, a laser-focused look emanates from her eyes.

"Pyxis!" Crater brushes away stray hairs from his eyes. "You haven't changed one bit, either!"

"Crater." Pyxis nods, looks him over. "Neither have you, I see." Walking over to a large, wall-mounted display, Pyxis brings it to life and rapidly swipes and taps. The platform illuminates and the glass sphere rises about a foot, then separates in two halves on either side of the platform.

"Edwin, what are you waiting for?" Pyxis asks without turning from the display.

"What am I supposed to—"

Pyxis turns quickly, her intense gaze meeting my confusion. "Time is not on our side," she says briskly, jutting her chin at the platform. Apparently that's my cue.

I look at Leo.

"Told you she was tough," he whispers.

"Thanks," I mouth.

Crater pats me on the back as I head to the simulator. "Don't worry, Edwin, this thing'll be a walk in the park for you!"

"Do not interfere with my instruction," Pyxis says calmly. "Your dive suit and helmet are behind the simulator."

With every step toward the machine I realize how big it really is. The platform itself is about four feet off the ground and ten feet in diameter, while the sphere looks to be double that. A high-pitched whirring sound grows as I approach.

I've logged a respectable number of light years in the DMN, but this thing's intimidating. The accelerator that allows you to enter the DMN looks nothing like this.

Behind the simulator, a dive suit and helmet hang on a small partition, where I change. Both fit perfectly and are standard EDP gear, with the palms of the dive suit made from special material that allows you to interact with dark matter on a dive and change your relative position; your speed is dictated by the dark current.

I hear a faint voice coming from the helmet but can't make out the words. Placing it over my head, the simulator's high-pitch noise disappears. "Hello?"

"Yes, I'm here," Pyxis replies.

"Were you saying something?"

"Yes: Any day now."

I start up the stairs.

"Move to the center of the platform, Edwin." Her voice is calm and steady. "Good. Now, put a slight bend in your knees. Very good."