Cities of Mars

Chapter 2 – Arrival

Chapter 2 – Arrival

Dale Kinmont stared out the observation window of the God's Eye Nebula. Mars loomed like an angry red eye, befitting its “god of war” namesake. Ellis Island Space Station, the United States Government's port-of-entry to the American Sector on Mars, had already zoomed past. Port Weir, the privately-owned station and international port, was approaching. It was an impressive facility and would soon obscure the planet from view.

“Nearly there,” Zack Kinmont said from behind him. He laid a hand on his nephew's shoulder. “Then the real work begins.”

Dale nodded absentmindedly. He didn't care about that. Well, he did, but not at that moment. All he could think about was Annora.

“She'll make it,” Zack said, as if reading his mind. “The doctors here are the best in the solar system. Everything here is better, actually. Mars is wonderful. Not like Earth at all. You have to see it to believe it.”

“I hope you're right.”

The distance closed, and Port Weir became the only thing in sight. It was a monstrous space station, bigger than any other Dale had seen, with rotating sections to simulate gravity and a variety of docks for every vessel type. Several Earth cultures had permanent communities there, and the station was full of amenities to cater to them. Every few minutes, a craft would dock or depart—some for the surface, others for another planet. Of all four planets' space stations, Port Weir seemed the biggest and busiest.

“Come on,” Zack said. “We're going to dock soon. Let's get ready.” He walked off, his sticky boots ripping away with every step and filling the air with their racket.

Dale turned from the window and followed him towards the airlock. His own boots added to the chorus.

They arrived at the inner airlock door and waited, joined by a steadily growing group of passengers. The ship continued to slow—it was barely moving now. The local Martian tugs gently nudged it into the proper vector. A few minutes later, the thuds and thumps of docking occurred. The ship sealed itself to the station, and then the vessel's outer door opened. The computer affirmed that the seal was good, and the inner door unsealed and slid open. A medical crew was waiting in the airlock.

“Excuse us, please,” the EMT in front said, bustling his way inside. The passengers parted to let them through.

Dale and Zack were already out of the way, and they watched the medics hurry into the ship. There were six of them, and they carried some medical gear that Dale couldn't identify. They disappeared down the corridor, filling the air with a cacophony of sticky-boot racket.

The other passengers began to disembark, but Dale and Zack stayed put. The crowd filtered out, and soon the two of them were alone.

A few minutes later, the medics reappeared with Annora. She was strapped to a sled and encased in some sort of semi-clear plastic cocoon. She was unconscious, of course, and her skin seemed way too pale, though that could have been a trick of the light. The sled had wheels, but they weren't in Port Weir's simulated gravity yet, so the medical crew simply floated her by hand through the ship's corridors. There were readouts and tubes and all sorts of things attached to both her and the sled. It gave her the semblance of a robot.

Dale pressed his lips tightly together. He had no idea what any of that stuff was, or what it was doing to her. All he could do was put his faith in the doctors and hope for the best.

The crew hurried past and carried her into Port Weir. Just like that, she was gone.

Dale lowered his head and sighed.

“Come on,” Zack said. “She's out of our hands now. Worrying about her won't accomplish anything. And we've got other people depending on us. Nat Leland is still out there, and it's up to us to do something about him.”

“I'm ready.” Dale sucked air into his nostrils with a hiss. He turned to Zack and looked him in the eye. “I've never been more ready for anything.”

“Good. Then follow me.”

They headed into the station.

* * *

“You're sure we don't need armed guards?” Dale asked as he walked down the corridor. It wasn't terribly crowded, but there were enough people coming and going to give him pause. He had already been shot at on two different space stations. He didn't want to add a third to the list.

“We're fine,” Zack replied. He nodded and smiled to a passerby. “Like I said, Mars isn't like the other planets. Not at all. In Nerio and here on Port Weir, the people tend to be very independent. They certainly don't care much for Earth or its politics. We've got enemies on the planet, of course, but they're just government bureaucrats, not Leland's employees, and they'll stick to AmSec.”

“I hope you're right.”

“AmSec is where Leland and the government are most comfortable. There's also the matter of jurisdiction to consider. The feds won't risk an international incident if they don't have to.”

“Makes sense.”

“This is it,” Zack said, gesturing with one hand and turning off the corridor. “This is our ride.”

They arrived at another dock. This one berthed the little shuttle in which they would soon leave for Red Sky, Tanaka-Chandra's space construction station.

Dale was a bit disappointed. He had hoped to see more of Port Weir. But Zack was right. It was time to get to work. It was time to “skip” over, something he had never heard of, but apparently referred to travel between space stations. He entered the boarding area for the shuttle.

There was a small crowd already there, waiting to skip over to Red Sky. They all seemed to recognize Zack. They weren't star-struck, though. They greeted him with casual waves and brief salutations, as if they were all old friends. One in particular, a tall woman in a gray business suit, walked up to them. She had a stern face that was more handsome than pretty, but also a dazzling smile full of perfect teeth. She had blonde hair that she wore up in a sort of bun. Everything about her gave off an aura of professionalism and competence.

“Dale,” Zack said, looking at him but gesturing to the woman, “I'd like you to meet Eliza Solberg, Vice President of Martian Operations for Tanaka-Chandra Enterprises. Eliza, this is my nephew.”

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kinmont,” Eliza said in a clipped, formal accent. “I've heard a lot about you.” She held out a hand.

“Likewise, Miss Solberg.” Dale shook her hand. “But please... call me Dale.”

“Ya, I will. And call me Eliza.”

“Eliza's my right hand,” Zack said to Dale. “She's Nerian to the core. Born and raised right here on the red planet. She practically runs the company's Martian operations single-handedly. I'm glad you finally get to meet her.”

“You're just in time, gentlemen,” Eliza said. “The shuttle is about to board.”

As if on cue, a voice spoke from the public address. “Attention, outbound passengers. Red Sky shuttle has docked. Please allow inbound passengers to disembark before boarding. Thank you.”

The door opened, and the shuttle's passengers filed into the station. When the flow slowed to a trickle, the travelers in the waiting area began to stream into the passageway.

Dale, Zack, and Eliza followed them.

* * *

Several minutes later, Dale gazed out the shuttle's window and got his first look at Red Sky Station, the heart of Tanaka-Chandra's shipbuilding operations.

It was much smaller than Port Weir, and there were no rotating sections to simulate gravity, but it was still very large. Dale estimated its size to be close to that of Phosphorus Station above Venus. Red Sky had a much more industrial look to it, with exposed pipes and trusses and pressure vessels. Frankly, it was ugly. It looked like something a drunken welder might cobble together. But what it lacked in aesthetics, it made up for in purpose.

An interplanetary passenger liner was being assembled in the main shipyard. Enormous robots moved massive modules into place. Other robots welded or Chandrapoxied ship components together. A few workers in spacesuits zipped around on thrusters, inspecting the work, but almost all of the tasks were automated. It was sometimes difficult to tell where one machine ended and another began. The overall impression was that of a ship seemingly constructing itself.

“Fascinating, isn't it?” Zack asked.

“It's incredible,” Dale said. “I've never seen anything like it. I mean, I always knew how the ships got built, but knowing and seeing are two different things. It's not just images or video from millions of miles away. It's actually right here in front of me.”

“She'll be ready for space trials soon. I've had crews working round the clock since we left Solar Terminal. But we'll discuss all that in my office.”

“Okay.” It truly was an awesome sight, and he couldn't take his eyes off the ship.