The heavy sensation from the sudden and dramatic acceleration lasted only a few seconds. After that, the ship settled in and there was barely any sense of movement at all.
“That’s it?” Carly asked. “Are we really in Gamma Speed?”
Gabriel touched his control panel and a map of the universe appeared. The Cloud Leopard was represented by a small green A that stood out brilliantly against the black void and brilliant white stars. The image was moving, though slowly.
“We’re on our way,” Gabriel declared. “I don’t know whether to be freaked out or disappointed. It doesn’t even feel like we’re going anywhere.”
“That’s a good thing,” Dash said while unbuckling his straps. “I wouldn’t want to be bracing myself like that for two weeks.”
STEAM joined the group and said, “It is now my job to brief you on the next phase of the mission.”
“Finally!” Gabriel declared.
On the monitor, an image of the green planet J-16 appeared.
“An unmanned probe was sent into space years ago,” STEAM explained. “It sent back these images. The planet is primitive, like Earth a million years ago. This video is from the probe as it made its landing.”
The screen changed to a moving shot flying over a dense green tropical jungle. The probe’s camera captured images from below as it flashed over a thick canopy that could have been a rain forest in Brazil.
“Atmosphere is breathable; gravity is like Earth,” STEAM said.
The probe zipped over the top of the dense canopy, then swooped down low, passing by tall, swaying bushes with leaves the size of blankets. It descended low over a tangle of vines and masses of colorful flowers.
“Where am I supposed to land in that mess?” Gabriel asked.
“Stand by,” STEAM said.
The thick ground cover gave way to a wide, grassy meadow that sat in a valley surrounded by distant, towering mountain ranges. Multiple waterfalls cascaded from the cliffs, completing the image of a tropical paradise.
The image showed that the probe descended quickly and landed softly in the grass.
“That is where you land,” STEAM said. “Navigation will lock onto the signal from the probe and guide you in, yes sir.”
“What kind of life is there?” Carly asked. “Besides all the vegetables.”
“Uncertain,” STEAM answered. “One thing we know is that there is no intelligent life. At least not as we know it.”
“I’ll bet there are snakes,” Gabriel said. “It looks like the kind of place that has lots of snakes. I hate snakes.”
“All the information you will need is stored in our data banks. We have two weeks to prepare,” STEAM said.
“All right, then,” Dash said. “Welcome home, everybody.”
The crew took time to make themselves get used to life aboard the Cloud Leopard. Many of their waking hours were spent in the recreation room watching movies and playing games. They worked out in the gym and raced each other through the tubes.
Meals were always a highlight. They ordered from an electronic menu, and soon after, the ZRKs would fly into the dining hall and deliver their food. When the meal was finished, the ZRKs would clear the table and clean up until not a single crumb was left.
The ZRKs were a constant presence. They not only maintained the complex systems of the ship, but they cooked meals, made the bunks, and did the laundry.
“I’m bringing some of these little guys home with me,” Gabriel would say multiple times a day.
The journey wasn’t all fun. Gabriel constantly checked the progress of the Cloud Leopard against the set course. He also continued his flight training in a simulator. The plan was to use the hovercraft to move over the surface of J-16, so he spent much of his time getting used to handling that vehicle.
Piper did daily medical checks on the crew, taking vital signs like temperature and blood pressure. She even did vision and hearing checks. The data was entered and sent back to Base Ten so doctors could monitor the health of the crew.
Carly needed to know the Element Fuser inside and out so she could prepare the Source when the time came. She took items from all over the ship like sugar, water, lint, food scraps…anything she could find to practice with the device and see what strange new compounds she could create. Mostly she came up with gook, but it made her confident that she had mastered the machine.
Dash spent a lot of time in the simulators as well.
Gabriel wasn’t happy about that. “I don’t care if he’s the commander,” he confided in Carly after a few days. “It’s not his job to fly. And he’s been monkeying with the Element Fuser and checking up on Piper too. It’s like he doesn’t trust us to do our jobs.”
“He’s just trying to stay on top of things,” Carly said, attempting to calm him down.
“Yeah, well, if he’s so good, maybe Phillips should have sent Dash out here by himself,” Gabriel said.
The tension between Dash and Gabriel wouldn’t go away, but it was minor compared to the dramatic events that took place only a few days into the flight.
Dash was on the track, running laps. As he finished his daily run, his eye caught a flash of movement in the gym below. It was too big to have been a ZRK, and too small to be one of the crew.
“Hey!” he called. “STEAM? That you?”
No answer.
A shadow moved underneath the trampoline.
“Gabe?” he called but got no reply.
Dash quickly went to the circular stairs that led from the raised track down to the gym floor.
“I know you’re there,” he called. “I saw you.”
Dash moved slowly, cautiously toward the trampoline. His pulse raced. What was going on? Why wasn’t the person answering?
“Stop messing, all right? This isn’t funny.”
Dash couldn’t see beneath the trampoline because his view was blocked by two large exercise balls.
“I know it’s you, Gabe. You’re going to jump out at me, right?”
Dash got close enough to the balls to touch them.
“All right,” he said. “Enough.”
He shoved the two balls aside to reveal…
…a golden retriever.
Dash was so shocked, he couldn’t move.
The dog walked up to him, sat down, and lifted his paw to shake.
Dash took it numbly.
“What the heck?” was all he managed to say.
The golden retriever pulled away from him and trotted for the door.
Dash fought to get his wits back and took off after the dog.
“Hey! Stop! Heel! Sit!”
The animal kept moving and ran forward through the corridor.
Dash was right behind him. It was a mistake. It had to be. The dog must have somehow got aboard without anybody knowing.
The dog ran up to the door that led to the room that was off-limits to the crew. He stood with his nose against the door and scratched at it.
“You can’t go in there,” Dash said. “It’s dangerous and…”
The door slid open.
Dash’s words caught in his throat when he saw who had opened it. Standing inside the off-limits room was yet another unexpected visitor.
It was the blond young man who had been watching the competition from the catwalk on Base Ten.
“You!” Dash exclaimed.
“I see you’ve met Rocket,” the teenager said.
“Rocket?” Dash repeated, stunned.
“My dog.”
“And who are you!” Dash demanded.
“My name is Chris. I’ll be joining you on your voyage.”
