Chapter 11

‘Music!’ KC said. She ran towards the dome door, the others following close behind.

‘I recognise that song,’ Nash said as everyone tumbled inside the dome.

Orson smiled. ‘Me too.’

‘I’ve never heard it before,’ Raj said. ‘What’s it called?’

‘It’s my mum’s favourite song,’ Nash explained. ‘It’s called Stereo Hearts. It’s old, but she plays it all the time.’

The song rang out on speakers hanging at intervals from the dome roof so it could be heard throughout the colony. It felt surreal that here, so far from Earth, music that had been made nearly eighty years ago was playing. ‘Can we take our suits off now, Mr Steele?’ Raj asked.

Orson tested the air. ‘There’s not as much oxygen as I’d like, but it is safe. We don’t need our breathing gear in here for now, but I’ll have to take a look at the oxygen converters. There’s quite a lot of carbon dioxide build up.’

While they were taking their suits off, Nash spotted a figure moving through the buildings. ‘Hey!’ he called out. ‘Hello!’ He waved and ran towards the figure. As he did so, realisation hit Nash. The figure wasn’t a human. It was a robot.

‘Alert! Alert!’ the robot shouted in a metallic voice as it rolled towards Nash on tracks, its arms swinging up and down. ‘Foreign bodies detected.’

‘Woah!’ Nash held his hands up in front of him. He didn’t trust robots, they reminded him too much of the evil Thunderforce. ‘Stay back!’

The robot kept coming. It’s alarm lights flashed red and blue. ‘Alert! Alert!’

KC stepped in front of the menacing robot. ‘Back off!’

‘Two foreign bodies detected!’ The robot swivelled towards Raj and Orson. ‘Correction. Four foreign bodies detected!’

‘What’s going on here?’ A man appeared behind the robot. ‘Stand down, Jimmy.’ He waved at the machine. ‘Return to your work.’ The robot’s lights dulled and it trundled away. The man faced Orson and the Space Kids, his eyes bright with excitement. ‘I’m George Vernon, one of the scientists stationed here. Are you from Misty? We’ve been waiting for you. Why didn’t you tell us you were here?’

‘We tried making contact, but your comms seem to be down,’ Orson said. ‘I’m the engineer, Orson Steele, and this is Nash, Raj, and KC.’

George nodded. ‘Welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Everything is breaking down.’ He looked sad for a moment then seemed to give himself a mental shake. ‘Anyway, you’re here now so things are already looking up. Why didn’t you touchdown on the landing site?’

‘We were blown off course and had to walk here,’ Orson said. ‘We have food and medical supplies on our spacecraft along with three other crew members. We’ll need a rover to retrieve it all.’

‘It’s too late to go today,’ George said. ‘We’ll have to go in the morning. It’s too cold outside the dome at night.’

Nash was worried. ‘What about Commander Best and the others?’

‘The shuttle has enough power to keep the crew warm,’ Orson replied. ‘It’s not ideal, but they’ll be safe until we can get them in the morning.’

‘I’ll show you around and introduce you to everyone,’ George said. ‘I’ll need you to look at the power system soon, though. Our oxygen levels are critically low.’

George gave them a tour of the colony, showing them where the crops – or what should have been crops – were growing. Rows of spindly plants grew in one corner of the domed colony. Nash recognised corn, cabbages, potatoes, and tomatoes. All were dead or drooping.

‘Crop after crop has failed,’ George said. ‘None of the plants have really thrived so we can’t produce enough food to be self-sufficient. That’s why we still rely heavily on supplies from Earth. Sometimes I think this planet doesn’t want us here.’

Next, George showed them the living and sleeping quarters then the research and testing labs where he introduced them to the other colonists including Dr Yuri Makarov and his son, Alex. Everyone seemed excited to meet them, especially Alex who chatted excitedly to Raj, Nash, and KC.

‘I hate to get you working straight away,’ Yuri told Orson, ‘but if you follow me, I’ll show you the power grid and the oxygen converters. We’ve tried everything, but we can’t get either system working properly.’

Orson rested his hand on Nash’s shoulder. ‘Why don’t you kids go and explore while I take a look at the oxygen converters?’

The kids set off with Alex leading the way. ‘I’ll show you my house,’ he said.

Nash thought it was amazing how normal Alex’s room was. There were books and toys, a bow and arrow set, and loads of LEGO constructions. Alex’s bookcase was covered with swimming medals and basketball trophies. He was – or had been before he moved to Mars – clearly good at sport.

‘It must be cool living on Mars,’ Nash said. ‘Look at your view!’ He gazed out the window at the sweeping red landscape and towering mountains in the distance. ‘Every kid dreams of living here, did you know that?’

‘I used to as well.’ Alex shrugged. ‘Now, not so much.’ He slumped into a fluffy purple chair in the corner of his room. ‘At first, it was great. Then it sunk in that I’d be here for a long time.’

‘Do you miss your sport?’ Nash asked, pointing to the medals and trophies.

‘I miss that most of all.’ Alex frowned. ‘As you might have noticed, there’s no swimming pools on Mars and Dad has to stay here for another two years. I may as well give up my dream of competing in the Olympics.’

It was obvious Alex was upset. Nash thought he sounded very lonely.

‘I’ve lived on Misty Space Station almost my whole life,’ Raj said. ‘It’s all I’ve ever known, but I’d like to think I’ll get back to Earth one day. You might too.’

Alex wasn’t convinced. ‘I wouldn’t count on it,’ he said.