《Castaway on the Red Planet》 01 A Great Leap Chapter 1 A Great Leap Temptation III with four crew members orbited the Earth. The spaceship was in the low-orbit space, approximately 400 km from the ground where the gravity of the Earth does not reach. Down below, the vast blue ocean was glittering under the sun. Temptation III consisted of two parts ; a command module that looks like a Kisses chocolate and a cylindrically shaped service module. Everyone was quite busy inside the service module. Captain Rei Ayanami shouted to the crew members. ¡°Everybody, let¡¯s get going! In exactly 5 minutes, we¡¯re gonna be broadcasted live, even the audio. No F words. OK?¡± The four crew members were wearing pressure suits. Today''s test was the process of disconnecting the command ship and the service module, then turning off the automatic guidance device and manually docking two modules within a given time. It was the Dragonfly¡¯s final test to select the crew members who will actually get on board the spaceship to Mars. Dragonfly, having taken over the Mars One Project, was selecting the final crews through an official audition program; just as the Mars One Project did last time. The selection process was to be broadcasted live. It was announced that the total point each crew receives, would be calculated by adding up the Dragonfly score and the audience submitted scores. Rei helped Michelle Chang put on her helmet while she grumbled, ¡°Why does it have to be this way?¡± ¡°No money, No journey. Without money, you can¡¯t take the taxi to Mars.¡± Rei said. ¡°Too expensive!¡± Robin Alex joined in. Rei made a ¡®X¡¯ with her two fingers at Alex, and commented with an exaggerated voice. ¡°Hey, I read in an old book once. In Seoul, before robo-taxis existed, there used to be ''bullet taxis'' around. These taxis drove at the speed of light, but were hell of a lot expensive. I say we catch one of these taxis to go to Mars.¡± Tall and slender Stanley Hugh, while connecting his gloves to his suit, was laughing outright. ¡°Hey Captain, it sure makes sense.¡± Hugh smiled at Rei. ¡°Hugh, you can take jokes now. Congrats on the progress¡± Rei said. Hugh shrug his shoulders. ¡°All these time we spent together; you can count on me¡± Rai cried out to the crew. ¡°Okay Everybody, just as we practiced. We can do it, right?¡± Alex, the tallest among the four crews, grinned slightly and saluted at Rei with his right hand. ¡°Sure, Captain!¡± Alex¡¯s curly red hair stuck out from his helmet. Michelle Chang laughed thinking he should have picked one size larger a helmet. ¡°All right, Fantastic 4.¡± The four to-be crews gathered their right fists together. Rei said, ¡°Don¡¯t go too far away, let¡¯s stick close to one another.¡± Other crew answered in union, ¡°Okay, We¡¯re not going to Mars right away.¡± Opening the narrow hatch, Micelle and Alex went across to the command module. ¡°4, 3, 2, 1 CUT.¡± Upon signal, studio control room at each broadcasting station broadcasted the image transferred to them from the service module and command module of Temptation III. At the main studio where a giant screen was standing, the host and the professional commentator were seated at a triangular table. ¡°A reality show for selecting the actual crews who will grab the chance to travel to Mars: namely the . It has already been a long journey of nearly 30 days, and we are nearing to the final round. Tell us, this team is famous, are they not?¡± The host smiled at the commentator. ¡°Yes, This team is a strong candidate to become the final winning team. Considering the viewers support, we can say that Rei is ranking no.1.¡± Edited image cuts of Rei and her best scores are on screen. While the live show was on, Hugh at the service module called out Rei in a low key voice. ¡°Captain.¡± ¡°Roger.¡± Rei winked her right eye at Hugh. One of the many unmanned cameras situated at the service module captured her wink. The network¡¯s director caught the scene and broadcasted it. ¡°Ah...¡± The commentator made an admiring noise. "Not so much admiring while we are on air live.¡± The host gave an advice to him. ¡°My comment was not addressed to Rei alone. At this moment, the command module has been detached from the service module. Very well organized. We did not even realize the separation. Extremely swift. This team surely have been practicing. They are indeed in perfect harmony.¡± The command module was getting afar. Two man-made objects were shining bright under the sunlight. Then something suddenly happened. Two modules were about 1 kilometers apart when the video signal went off at the sound of a deafening loud thump. ¡°What was this? What happened?¡± The host and the commentator were both in confusion. ¡°Oh no, hope this is not a collision with a space debris¡± the commentator lamented. ¡°This is an unexpected disaster....are the crews OK?¡± the host said.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Rei was blacked out for a moment but soon managed to open her eyes. The place was a big chaos. All items were dancing about in the air, moving in disorder. It meant that the service module was rotating on irregular basis. Decompression warning light was lighting up and down in red and warning call was beeping continuously. Rei held tight onto the rail in front of the experimental equipment in order to stay put. Stanley Hugh came into her eyes. Hugh¡¯s four limbs were floating in the air as he flew up the air without holding onto anything. Rei cried, ¡°Hugh!¡± A dark red liquid droplet sprang up above Hugh''s ear. It seemed as if he got hurt on the head. Rei grabbed Hugh with her two legs and tried to shake him on his shoulder with her left hand. Hugh showed no sign of getting awake. Rei put an helmet on his head. The command module that Michelle Chang and Robin Alex was on, was separated from the service module so that they could film the service module. Michelle and Alex were petrified at the sight of the service module. Like a drum washing machine rotating on a loose rubber, the service module recklessly turning round and round in a circle. Dragonfly control center stopped the audio signal and changed the video direction that was being transmitted to the broadcasters, to the inside of the command module. However, the broadcasters instantly detected what was going on. BBC was reviewing whether to discontinue live broadcast. ¡°Prepare the filler (Filler: an alternative program prepared to replace programming in case of a broadcast accident) and stop live broadcasting¡± said the program''s executive producer. ¡°Stop? The rating is rocketing up now!¡± the director asked back. ¡°We can¡¯t broadcast people dying!¡± producer shouted. ¡°What? Don¡¯t you know that when Space Shuttle Challenger, Mars One Rocket exploded, everything was broadcasted live?¡± The director''s rebuttal was calm and logical. At the exterior wall of the service module, water and air was simultaneously coming out. As they gushed out into space, they instantly froze and sparkled like jewels. If human lives were not in danger, the scenery was way more beautiful than the word ¡°beautiful¡± could express. Something hit hard on Don-Hassler-Tank, a tank to shield space radiation. Air inside the ship and water in the tank were rapidly draining out into space, which signified that a hole penetrating the tank and the ship must have been made. Although the thing that hit the tank was small in size, the destructive power and the reaction came from its speed, not the size. If it had flown from the opposite direction, the speed could have been 56,000km per hour which is more than 100 times the speed of a flying bullet. Luckily, the electric system including communication equipment were all working well. ¡°Chang. Do you hear?¡± Rei said. ¡°Rei! Are you OK? I kept on calling out your name for the last few minutes!¡± Michelle Chang was sobbing. Rei asked, ¡°Can¡¯t we stop the spinning?¡± Chang replied quickly, ¡°We tried but there¡¯s no way, the thrust of the auxiliary rocket from the service module is too low. This is an activation exceeding the posture control range.¡± The staffs at the Earth Control Center were in panic and they were shouting out aloud to each other. However, it was clear that they were not being helpful, were disastrously dealing this emergency situation. Compared to the NASA control center, the number of staffs were only one twentieth. and everybody at the control tower were terrified by such helpless state that their mouths had all dried up. An officer in the control room asked the staff a question. ¡°Can¡¯t the command module come closer and give help?¡± ¡°No it can¡¯t. If it comes closer the 2 other crews become endangered. It¡¯s like jumping into a fire pit. It¡¯s just like putting your finger in a rotating fan.¡± one of the staff answered. The Center¡¯s director covered his head with his palms. He had absolutely no idea what caused the hole in the service module. Recently, The People¡¯s Liberation Army, Strategic Support Force in China claiming for a ¡°major overhaul of the geostationary satellite orbit¡±, has experimented on destroying their own satellites. The director vaguely suspected that such experiment may have something to do with this situation. In order to destroy a satellite which has terminated its service, it is a common sense to move it over 150km higher level, China often ignored the process. Since the Earth¡¯s Control Center of Dragonfly, did not get full support from NASA, PDAM (Pre-determined Avoidance Maneuver) was not prepared nor expected. A rectangular object flew over to Rei and hit her head. She was wearing a helmet, but nevertheless she almost fainted. The tape player which Hugh carried with him, was called MYMY. It was a popular item back in 1980¡¯s. Rei breathed in and out. It was a sign that she had made her decision. Rei pulled out a USB cable which was connected the experimental device, and tied the cable around Hugh and herself. ¡°Chang, listen up¡± said Rei. ¡°I am here!¡± Chang answered in loud voice. ¡°I know we can¡¯t stop this, but let¡¯s change the service module¡¯s rotation axis by remote control.¡± Rai proposed a new alternative. Chang said, ¡°How do we do that?¡± Rai explained, ¡°Let¡¯s make module rotate around the center.¡± ¡°What are you thinking?¡± Chang couldn''t understand what Rai want. "Time was limited." Rei shouted. ¡°Quick! We can¡¯t all die like this. Hurry up!¡± Chang and Alex decided to do what Rei want. ¡°OK, we go in 30 seconds. The duration of the service module¡¯s posture control engine lasts only about 1 minute.¡± ¡°Alex!¡± Rei called Alex. ¡°I hear you, Rei.¡± Robin Alex who was in charge of the joystick in place of Rei, the pilot, held the joystick tighter than before. Rei asked, ¡°And I know it¡¯s dangerous, but please come a little, just a little closer. This is all I can say.¡± Alex replied in a determined manner, ¡°Right. Then, I will approach the closest I can get.¡± Chang counted the number backwards, starting from 5. ¡°Now. Start engine injection!¡± The service module which was rotating in random, temporarily revolved in one direction. Although not perfect, it rotated with its body as axis. Soon, Robin Alex and Michelle Chang could not believe the sight unfolding in front of their eyes. Ayanami Rei jumped up high into the space, as if stomping her feet to do a turn in a swimming pool, The remaining air. odds and ends in the service module poured out simultaneously. ¡°My goodness, Look at that! That¡¯s a pressure suit, not a spacesuit!¡± Chang screamed in astonishment. Rei was holding onto something looking like a soccer ball with her hands. It was the ship¡¯s assistant robot named Exi. Exi had a small compressed nitrogen tank installed so that it can change its posture in a vacuum condition. Rei put a hole in it to achieve additional driving force. As she was wearing just a simple pressure suit, she would probably be able to withstand only for about 1 minute. Temperature in space could go up as high as +120 degrees celsius to -148 degrees celsius. ¡°This is a great rendez-vous." Alex muttered and moved the joystick calmly . Fortunately, the command module¡¯s control system was way smarter compared to the old days when Apollo was around. Finally, Rei¡¯s extended hand reached the command module¡¯s rail. ¡°Wow!¡± The command module, the Earth¡¯s control tower, and the audience watching from all around the world applauded at Rei. Rei had accomplished a ¡°Great Leap¡± which none had attempted before, with the blue Earth shining behind as background. BBC had to endure overwhelming phone calls of complaints. A broadcaster abiding by its moral values is not always complimented. 02 Like a Family Chapter 2 Like a Family Rei and Hugh, tied up together, came into the command module. Hugh was still unconscious. Alex closed the hatch hurriedly. They filled in the air which was let out in a manual mode. Chang sent over a signal after having checked the barometric pressure gauge. The crews took off their helmets. It was not yet time to celebrate. Rei sat on her captain seat. Chang and Alex assisted Hugh to sit on a chair. On the outside, Hugh did not seem to be hurt. However, they had no idea how much internal bleeding he was having. In case of internal bleeding in zero-gravity, it was extremely difficult to let it flow out. Chang spoke out anxiously, ¡°Could he survive?¡± ¡°We have no choice, let¡¯s hurry,¡± Rei said. Alex put a X shape safety belt around Hugh, ¡°OK, Will start right away with capcom.¡± The position in the orbit was not bad. ¡°Here we go. Slowing down the engine.¡± Rei injected the engine break control at the speed of 500km per hour. ¡°Let¡¯s give it a try!¡± They could feel the Earth pulling them towards it. In about 25 minutes, they will be able do a free fall. In the meantime, the gravity of 4 times greater power than that of Earth, will weigh down on the four crews. Their airway was not an exception. As it became more difficult to breathe, Alex shouted out, ¡°I really....hate gorillas.¡± Rei answered, ¡°You are so corny." ''Gorilla'' is a traditional expression for the pain felt by astronauts when the acceleration of gravity increases. "I actually think this feeling is rather sweet? I imagine handsome Hugh sitting on me.¡± Rei¡¯s words stopped and stopped in between. Chang said, ¡°Rei, but Hugh...is lying there like that?¡± Rei suddenly turned wildly angry. ¡°Hugh, will be all right! He will get well again!¡± Alex tried to cool down Rei. ¡°Okay, Okay, no need to lose yourself¡± Outside the small window of the command module, a grand plasma made due to the frictional heat, glimmered as if awaiting to devour the ship. The heat sink underneath the command module was vaporizing. The fire, for some reason, reminded Rei of Hugh¡¯s brown curly hair. The parachutes opened up. The body of the crews suddenly lurched forward as if they had been in a car crash. ¡°Wow!¡± ¡°We are alive!¡± They were safe. As the parachutes opened, their return home was over 90% a success. ¡°Captain. we are all so lucky!¡± Alex cheered clapping his hands and Chang gave a shout of joy. Chang said, ¡°My mom used to tell me that my MING will be long.¡± ¡°MING? What¡¯s that?¡± Rei asked. Rei¡¯s parents were from Japan, but Rei did not know much Chinese characters. Chang answered, ¡°Oh, it is a Chinese letter meaning LIFE.¡± The command module fell at a point quite near the expected landing spot of the East Sea. Chang and Alex opened the hatch first and helped Hugh come out. Doctors who were awaiting for them at a nearby barge assisted them to move Hugh onto the barge. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We assume it¡¯s only a light concussion.¡± One of the doctors having noticed Rei¡¯s worried face, told her not to worry and pointing his thumb at her. The pilots were escorted to a helicopter of which a large ''Dragonfly'' company logo was drawn on its outside. Alex and Chang staggered as they were not used to Earth¡¯s gravity yet. ¡°Wow, what¡¯s this luxury about?¡± Michelle Chang opened her eyes wide, and looked at the blue helicopter with white writing, S-76 Sikorsky written on it.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. It was the first time a helicopter was awaiting to pick them up. They were not actual pilots yet, they were still audition challengers. Rei smiled at the crews, as she stretched her long legs to ride on the helicopter. ¡°I guess there is a reason. I picture it already,¡± Chang asked back, ¡°What picture?¡± Rei said, ¡°You will see. I think it will a huge bustle¡± The helicopter stopped at the astronaut training facility near West Sea satellite launch site in Korea Federation. The heliport seemed to be newly renovated as the asphalt¡¯s dark gray contrasted vividly with the clean white lines. There were thousands of reporters on site. It seemed that nearly all the press bureaus stationed in Pyongyang had sent a reporter. Alex was bewildered and scratched his head. ¡°What? So many of them! How did them come to this faraway countryside so fast?¡± Rei tapped on Alex¡¯s shoulder and said, "I told you it will be a bustle. Such a scene happened up there was broadcasted live. Who would not come here for an interview? So, try your best not to stagger, walk straight and get your mind right. This means that our team has high possibility of winning! Here we go, get ready!¡± The helicopter door opened up and Rei stepped down to the asphalt floor. Tons of flashes bursted. Rei, holding her helmet with her right hand smiled brightly. ¡°Great! Keep on smiling!¡± Rei asked the other crews to make a pose in front of the camera as well. Rei, as if doing a football goal ceremony, twisted her forefinger and middle-finger and touched her left eyebrows with it. With her ring finger folded and her little finger open, she made her own style of a salute. It was indeed, return of the heroine. The staffs restricted the reporters from getting too close to the crews. However, they stretched out their boom microphones and continued asking questions. "How do you feel?¡± ¡°What is the string you had used to tie your colleague?¡± ¡°Was the escape you just made instructed in the manual?¡± One of the reporters asked a question aloud, ¡°Wasn¡¯t it too dangerous?¡± Rei who was smiling as she walked, stopped at that point. She stared at the reporter who asked the last question. There was an instant tension but soon, she smiled kindly and said, ¡°Magellan did not return to Spain...but I am alive right in front of you. Should I be sorry for this?¡± Rei asked the reporter to move closer to her by moving her fingers. The reporter, eager to hear more about the journey, bent closer to Rei. Rei moved her face nearer to the reporter, near enough to be able to kiss him, and with a sweet smile on her face, said, ¡°You bastard. Is that all you can say to someone who survived from near death experience?¡± Rei kicked the reporter¡¯s leg and the reporter helplessly knelt down. Nobody had noticed Rei¡¯s kick. Everyone looked bewildered. Rei, as if nothing had happened, continued waving her hands at the reporters. ... The astronauts rode their mini-bus and arrived at Mars Camp One, their lodge for the night. The three crews were finally able to take off their pressure suits. Inside their suits were all wet with sweat. Although everything was over, the fever was still lingering. It was an accident which almost killed two astronauts. Rei, unlike herself, said to the other crews, ¡°You know what? I was wondering...who would cry for me if I die.¡± Chang jokingly looked over at Rei and answered, ¡°Hey, you are an idol star! I am sure millions of your fans will cry!¡± But Rei wasn¡¯t joking. She was serious. ¡°No, not that...¡± Chang smiled and stroke Rei¡¯s hair. ¡°Why do you say that?¡± Rei was more than perfect in everything. She had balanced and robust body, and her inner persistence and agility added with the physical fitness made her stand out in all sports training. Rei said, ¡°You silly! I don¡¯t have a family. I am all by myself.¡± Michelle Chang suddenly opened her eyes widely. ¡°Really? Me neither, I have no family as well.¡± Rei looked back at Chang and said, ¡°Hey... Michelle, you always talked about your mom.¡± Chang replied, ¡°Yeah. But she passed away. It¡¯s been more than 10 years.¡± Rei hugged Michelle. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, Chang.¡± Robin Alex also came over to them. ¡°Let¡¯s talk a little more. There¡¯s something weird about this.¡± Michelle Chang stared at Alex. ¡°What is weird? Then...you too, Alex?¡± Alex, with a straight face, nodded back. ¡°Wow...¡± Michelle Chang¡¯s face stiffened. The three crews fell into silence. The process of Dragonfly, selecting the pilots for ''Mars Two Project'' was as same as the way they chose for ''Mars One Project''. It was even more competitive. Among 2,700 applicants, they narrowed to 500, then to 100 and the final 24 were divided into 6 groups of 4. The whole process was open to public, and audience vote on TV was also added. The broadcasting right of this space reality show was sold throughout the world and the world audience participated in the show by sending their vote. The size of the advertisement income for the show was more than a triple times bigger than that of a once famous Super Ball Games. The sports management and copyright companies envied Dragonfly as they were sweeping all the money. Alex said waving his hands in the air with an absurd face. ¡°Then...who were those people waving hands outside the quarantine room? I remember that there were kids there too.¡± Chang said, ¡°Well...they must have been Hugh¡¯s family. I don¡¯t know, I am gonna go take a leak. Luckily this time, my diaper is feeling fresh and clean.¡± She got up and walked over to the shower room. Chang was smiling but her eyes were wet with tears. Rei must have hurt the dark side of Chang¡¯s past. Alex kept his absurd face. ¡°Whichever way you think...this is stochastically impossible.¡± Rei said, ¡°Maybe...¡± ¡°Maybe?¡± Alex listened up curiously with his ears up. Alex¡¯s ears really moved upwards when he wanted it to. ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s natural. People do say that the journey to Mars is a one way trip, so called a ''suicide journey'', that it¡¯s so crazy. Perhaps we are the people suitable for this kind of a task? We, who are used to disguising our loneliness...¡± Rei said. She walked towards the shower, waving her hands at Alex. Rei thought it did not matter ¨C whether the crews had a family or not, whether there was a grand conspiracy behind everything or not. Rei recalled Hugh and smiled. Maybe it¡¯s not that bad after all. ''Two men and two women. I guess we will be like a family.'' 03 Ghost in Reality Chapter 3 Ghost in Reality Although it was past midnight in Midtown New York, there was still fever left in the streets. People passing by were cheering and warmly patted each other on the shoulders. Everyone was excited and shared the feeling of unity. The reality show , which broadcast the accident in orbit live, shook people''s hearts. Some people chanted "Rei" loudly. The self-driving car stopped in front of PNC Bank on West 41st Street, New York. A man with a dark curly hair got out of the car. Under the street lamp in the darkness of the night, his distinct features were portrayed as a shadow on the wall. He was over 6 feet tall and looking slender. ¡°Will call again at dawn,¡± Jay said to self-driving car. "Thank you, sir. Will await for your call according to the previous pattern," The self-driving car answered in a monotonous voice. It closed the door and departed. The man, wearing a pair of light blue jeans and dark beige trench coat, strode ahead. A thrilling story that unfolds more dramatically than any existing fiction series, advent of a hero and a beautiful ending ¨C the media effect was indeed strong. The incident was broadcasted live on TV thanks to Dragonfly¡¯s well woven business model; and even though audiences should have blamed and criticized the event, the result was absolutely the opposite. People were craving for a drama in real life and longed for a live hero, in the epoch where myths were long forgotten. The man crossed the 4 lane road and entered the New York Post building. On the outside of the building wall, were written a funny quote: ¡°Martians Be Ambitious¡±. As the time was late, there were hardly anybody in the newsroom. A colleague who was leaving the office having packed his bags, spoke to the man. ¡°Jay Robinson, no need to overreact and make a fuss out of nothing.¡± Jay spoke nervously, ¡°It¡¯s none of your business, why don¡¯t you go home, huh?¡± Jay heard his colleague mumble behind him ¡°Ignoring other¡¯s advice, some stubborn fella.¡± Jay moved from Space Dot to his current position at New York Post some time ago, but he was not able to mingle with the New York Post colleagues. They were always keeping him in check, regardless of the situation. Everytime he sensed the distance from his colleagues, the more burden he felt when it comes to writing articles. Jay had hesitated as the time was late, but he decided to come back to office, as he had things to finish up. Jay preferred writing in the office rather than elsewhere. Especially when he wanted to write an in depth feature article adding on-site atmosphere, not a straight article which only provides essential information. His pride did not allow inputting every information to the article documenting robot.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Jay sat on his chair and put his legs on his desk. ¡°Doggy, get me a drink.¡± A four-feet walking service robot fetched a can, wagging its tail like a real dog. Its body, which was made up of yellow plastic, stepped lightly. It was one of the popular products presented by the Boston Mechanics. The population of cats and dogs showed rapid increase as more and more people lived alone. However, the advent of ¡®companion robots¡¯ made ¡®companion animals¡¯ useless; companion robots contained various functions and were free from medical fee. Some governments actually massacred all the cats as they do with rats. Reuters and AP feeds beeped at the same time. A large-sized monitor in the office showed the satellite launching site in the West Sea. Press line was formed and a group of reporters gathered to take the best seat. They were extremely crowded that it seemed as if a little push will make them collapse like dominos. Dong Chang district was originally a site for the development and launching of ICBM by the DPRK in the early 2000s, under the ostensible reason of ¡®space development¡¯. commercial small-size satellites were launched here occasionally after agreement on the case of nuclear weapon and the establishment of the Korean Federation. This was because the projectile could pass the Japanese sky. Dragonfly established the Astronaut Training Facility and Mission Control Center in the Dong Chang district. It was because the human resources and facilities were comparatively cheap here. Most parts of the Korean Federation usually have high population density, but this place was not so, because DPRK had designated this area as a military zone. Mars Camp One, a shelter for the pilot advocates, was also built in this place. From afar approached the helicopter transporting the heroes. ¡°Open up your memo pad and write down what I say,¡± Jay, while watching the screen, spoke to the article writing robot. ¡°Helicopter door opened up and Rei came out first. She was holding her helmet with her right hand. She was wearing an orange color pressure suit and her red dyed hair blew in the air. The reporters are taking pictures of her and the flash of the cameras are brightening around Rei.¡± Jay focused on the screen while drinking a sip of energy drink. He said, ¡°And Rei...¡± And he did not manage to finish the sentence, and his eyes opened up wide. As he had put his legs on the desk, he fell from the chair trying to change his posture in a hurry. The energy drink can he was holding was spilt all over his clothes. Nevertheless, as if nothing mattered at all, Jay concentrated on the screen. He seemed bewitched. Jay ordered, ¡°Change the screen. 1 minute ahead, rewind it to 1 minute before! Slowly, slowly and play¡± Rei, with her helmet held in her right hand, smiled brightly at the reporters. Soon, as if doing a ceremony, twisted her forefinger and middle-finger and touched her left eyebrow with her fingers. Her ring finger folded and her little finger open. ¡°Again, play once again. Zoom in closer to watch her left hand movement. Zoom in! Stop!¡± Jay stopped the screen and stared at Rei¡¯s left hand and her two fingers. It was like seeing a ghost. Memories of the past passed by like a broken movie scene. Mars One Project Rocket Stumpalos which was exploded into pieces in fire. The person who was sitting on the very top. The very person who wanted to leave Earth forever, and who wanted to leave her last trace. Jay had a last farewell with her at dawn, at a place where there was a great plain ahead of them. Jay got up abruptly. He sat down properly again and started pressing the screen with his finger like crazy. ¡°Search for all information on Rei. Access all possible database.¡± Jay put his hand on his forehead as he felt a little dizzy. ¡°Search for all social media images. Let me know if there¡¯s anyone doing the same hand posing. Tina is dead!¡± Jay wanted to deny it, but he did not yet find any rational basis to deny it. 04 Soul Dwells in Every Dream Chapter 4 Soul Dwells in Every Dream 1G, the last experience of gravity on earth. I raised my leg slightly and put it down again. How I will miss this feeling of falling down. I remembered the scent of Jay for a brink of a moment. In just 1 hour or so, I will be seated on top of the rocket. Waiting room was busy with people. A man in a white gown approached me. On my chest, was written ¡°MARS ONE¡±. The man handed me a pill and a cup of water. It contained just enough water to swallow the pill. Preparation was required to depart from earth. I swallowed the pill without any doubt. Then somehow, my eyelids became heavier and alas, I could no longer control my body. I fell to the ground. I could not see anything. Just a faint sound was heard. Whirring sound as if I was in a gigantic fishbowl. An urgent voice, sound of footsteps. Wheel sound of a rollaway bed. I was raised and put on the bed. Sound of an ambulance siren getting closer, further, closer and further. Unfamiliar place. Someone was taking off my spacesuit in haste. Even my white underwear worn under the pressure suit was being taken off. My trousers are torn with scissors. The sharp sound of the scissors made me feel as if my skin was getting cut. I felt cold. Men in operation gowns looked down on me. Sound of a chain-saw turning. Smell of calcium burning. my hair being pulled. From my clavicle to the pit of my stomach, something sharp runs down. I could watch myself from above. Skull was open like a wide open lid. Face all bloody and eyes, nose, mouth, not easy to discern. Chest open. I could clearly see my heart thumping up and down although no sound was heard. ... Mars Camp One was situated 3 kilometers to the northeast direction of the West Sea Satellite Launch Station in Chul-San, Pyungan Bukdo, the northern province of Korea Federation. With a 10 floor high practice building in the center, dormitory rooms were surrounding it in a circular sector with a shape of a cocoon. They were all built using a 3D printer, identical to that of the Mars architectural plan. Early morning, a sharp scream pierced into darkness. It came from Rei¡¯s room. Michelle Chang, having heard the scream, got wide awake and knocked on the door to Rei¡¯s room. ¡°Rei! Rei! What is it? Come on.¡± After some time, Rei finally opened up the door. Her face pale as a ghost. Chang asked, ¡°What happened?¡± Rei replied, ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing. Nothing to worry about.¡± It was not nothing. It was another one of Rei¡¯s nightmare which comes repeatedly over and over again. Michelle hugged Rei to comfort her. She was sweating so bad that her clothes had become all wet. ¡°But you¡¯re sweating so much. Look at yourself,¡± said Micell Chang, looking at Rei anxiously. ¡°I am hot actually.¡± ¡°You liar, are you sure you¡¯re gonna be okay?¡± asked Chang again, in a determined manner. Rei clenched his fist and said to her, ¡°Now I am OK. I...think I¡¯m gonna go for a walk.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t forget. We¡¯re a team and you are the leader,¡± said Chang, as she wrapped her arms around Rei''s shoulders. ¡°Sure,¡± Rei answered. Rei smiled at Michelle. The crew selection announcement is only a few days away now. Everyone was anxiously waiting. Nevertheless, Rei knew that the reason for her nightmare was not related to this. Her dream was like endless repeat signs on a music manuscript. The clock showed that it was a little over 5am. A dog was barking from afar. Rei walked fast and then started running. Even after waking up from her dreams, the dream scenes were clear and vivid as crystal. Even though she tried to ignore it, the images of her dream never went away. It was so real that it seemed like reality itself. Perhaps it was a deja vu for the future, yet, it could never be the past. According to Rei¡¯s memory, she had never experienced lying down on a hospital bed. ¡°Good morning, Rei! You¡¯re here early?¡± Another contestant greeted her. Rei gave a big smile back, pretending everything was OK. The bigger problem for Rei was the way she woke up from her dream. There was always someone standing in front of Rei. A person she had never met before. That someone stared fiercely at Rei. Rei shouted and instinctively tried to throw a punch. At that moment, Rei realized that the someone was actually Rei herself, just as the image of her portrayed in the mirror. It was not the first time, but everytime she realized who she was, Rei was petrified. Rei searched for symptoms of sleepwalking, but it did not seem to match her case. Her body was not moving in unconsciousness, but a being which was not herself, was taking control of her body during sleep. The dream came by more and more frequently. It was inadequate to visit a doctor. Rei knew it was impossible to demolish her dream, rather, the dream of all four crew members.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ''Let¡¯s hang on a little longer. Maybe I am too tired.'' Rei encouraged herself. Still, she was afraid of getting asleep. It was pitch-dark in early morning, as winter was still lingering in March. Still, no star came into her sight as the street-lamps were too brightly lit. Rei turned her eyes to the eastern sky. She supposed that there would be Mars shining bright at this time of the day...together with Jupiter and Saturn. ... Hugh was transferred to Pyongyang. It was not far from the West Sea Statellite Launch Station. There were hardly any cars on the newly built eight-lane highway. Hugh moved a little trying to get up but his temple all bundled with bandages ached in pain. Since he got hit hard, the wound was deep. ¡°I saw you on TV, but you look better in real,¡± said one of the hospital nurse. ¡°Thank you,¡± Hugh smiled shyly. ¡°There is an old saying in Pyongyang, ''When you have fallen down, seize the chance and take a rest.'' We examined you but you seem totally fine...so, we advise you take a good rest today, and leave the hospital tomorrow," The doctor in charge of Hugh advised. In the city center of Pyongyang, by the Botong riverside was standing the Bongwha Hospital. The hospital room which accomodate 2 patients, was on the 15th floor. The room was clean but timeworn. Metal bed which was painted over and over again squeaked every time the patient moved. The walls of the room also had visible cracks here and there. Outside the window, there was a pyramid shaped Yoogyung Hotel. In terms of space usage, the structure was way too inefficient. Considering the low knowledge of architectural techniques in the North Korea days, one could suppose that it was the best they could build. Just like in many cities of Europe, city redevelopment in Pyongyang was not supported by the citizens. The building built in North Korea since the Korean war until the beginning of 2020s were indescribably attractive. Majority of people in Pyongyang wished to preserve the city¡¯s architectural heritage. The windows were tightly shut due to yellow smog. Hugh, dressed with pressure bandage on his head, was gazing at the pyramid standing amidst the yellow smog. Hugh imagined that he had come to Egypt and faintly smiled. The first thing Hugh heard when he came to his senses was news about Rei. Rei came to meet him at the hospital early in the morning, and although it was too early a time to visit a patient, Rei had insisted on seeing him. It was the usual Rei who never give up on something she decides to do. ''Loving someone...'' Hugh thought about the definition of ¡°love¡±. Hugh kept his distance from such feeling of affection. Love is perhaps an attachment. Motion of your mind regardless of the situation you are in. Love is perhaps worrying. This may be the reason why Hugh did not want Christina to draw nearer. Sound of footsteps approaching towards his room, and the door opened up. It was Rei. ¡°Hugh!¡± It has only been a day since the accident, yet Rei¡¯s cheeks had become slightly bony. ¡°Hey, you were worried?¡± ¡°What do you expect, huh?¡± Rei hit Hugh on his stomach playfully with her fist and said, ¡°This is for making me worried.¡± Gazing at Hugh, Rei climbed up the bed and pressed her lips against Hugh¡¯s lips. Rei hugged him tightly without allowing even 1millimeter space in between them. Rei did not express her affection when they were together with the other crews. She kept a line between public and private lives. But when they were together without others around them, she was affectionate, always expressing herself freely. Rei had sweated a little. It seemed that she dashed up the stairs till she reached the 15th floor. ¡°Don¡¯t get hurt next time,¡± Rei raised her eyes and looked into Hugh¡¯s eyes. She clamped her lips. She seemed to be saying that she will run to him if he gets hurt again. Hugh carefully ran his fingers through her hair falling on her face, as to look into her eyes better. ¡°I could¡¯t sleep well last night,¡± Rei sighed, unlike her usual self. ¡°Are you saying you were worrying about me all night?¡± Hugh asked. ¡°No, you know me. It¡¯s not that,¡± She was serious. ¡°Did you dream the same dream last night? The nightmare?¡± he asked with a worried look on his face. Ray nodded. Rei was always strong and cheerful. However, she hid her shadowy self beneath her. Like a wounded tigress, she never disclosed her lacerated wound to others. ¡°I really don¡¯t know who I am,¡± her words sounded like sighs. Hugh asked, ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I think my memory may all be fake,¡± said Ray, looking down at the floor. ¡°Fake?¡± said Hugh, with a puzzled look on his face. Rei walked to the window. Outside was dark with smog and the pyramid building was standing tall all by itself, ¡°There isn¡¯t anyone who can prove that my memories aren¡¯t fake.¡± Hugh asked back what ''prove'' meant. ¡°What do you mean by ¡®prove¡¯?¡± Rei moved towards Hugh and said, ¡°There¡¯s nobody who can prove that I was born in Kyoto when the whole city was blooming with cherry blossom.¡± Memories may be something that is collective and constructive. ¡°Did you know...¡± Rei asked Hugh as if he had thought of something then. ¡°Amongst us four, besides you, three of us have no families? Three of us are all alone. Did you know that?¡± ¡°No,¡± said Hugh affirmatively. It was a lie. Hugh knew. Although Hugh had a family, his data was manipulated and the record showed that he had no family. Dragonfly gave additional scores to those without families. Although Hugh changed the information to get the scores, he never seriously asked the reason why they gave additional scores. He thought it was a way of promotion to look more dramatic. Rei continued her talks about the dream, ¡°It¡¯s way too vivid. It was real as if everything was happening right in front of my eyes.¡± Rei frowned. Bringing up her dream back was torturing her. ¡°My dream. What could it be?¡± Hugh smiled. Rei insisted, ¡°This is no joke. I am darn serious. It¡¯s like there is another me inside of me.¡± Rei thumped her chest with her right fist. But she could not tell Hugh the scene she faced this early morning. Rei turned to him and said, ¡°Perhaps I am a robot?¡± Hugh laughed out loud and said, ¡°Robot? You mean a robot? What makes you think you are a robot?¡± Hugh got up from his bed and walked towards Rei. He bent his waist and softly kissed Rei on her lips. ¡°Would you be able to love me if you are a robot?¡± Rei stared at Hugh and asked. Hugh stroked Rei¡¯s cheeks and said, ¡°Rei, being able to dream means that you have a soul. Even if you are a robot...¡± Hugh felt bad. In some sense, Rei was taken hostage to Hugh. Rei¡¯s existence meant so much to the team. Rei, being a member of the team raised the possibility of getting selected as the final crews for the Mars Two. The selection will enable them to realize what they have planned for. Hugh hugged Rei from the back. It was comforting and it made her feel that she can endure what¡¯s waiting ahead of her. 05 Orange Colored Fire Chapter 5 Orange Colored Fire It was late summer. A week before the launch date of Mars One Project. Jay Robinson was driving towards Vision Mars Center in Florida. Jay breathed nervously while driving his car. He heard his heart beating loud. The call last night was a grand surprise. ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± It was Tina. If She called, either she accepted or refused the interview. ¡°Hi Tina, have you decided to go for it?¡± Jay said. Jay was working for a small professional magazine company named . It had been about a month since Jay exchanged contacts with Tina. They became comfortable with each other¡¯s call. A month can be a short time, but it was a long enough time for Jay, as he persistently persuaded Tina for an interview during the time. Tina said, ¡°Yes, I decided to do it. But..¡± ¡°But what?¡± Jay asked. ¡°I have a condition,¡± She said. Jay''s voice became brighter, ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°The interview must be published after the launch,¡± Tina told him the condition. ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. I understand,¡± Jay said joyfully. It wasn¡¯t only for the interview that Jay had chased her. When Jay met Tina for the first time, he thought that they exchanged a strong sign. Jay thought Tina too was attracted to him. ¡°Can you come over?¡± said Tina. ¡°You mean to Florida?¡± Jay asked. Tina was saying that she did not intend to do an online interview, ¡°Yes, right here.¡± Jay jumped up from his bed. he actually wanted to see Tina one more time before she left. ¡°I suppose I''m not allowed to enter the facility?¡± Jay thought there were some problems to solve. However, Tina''s reaction was unexpected,¡°I told you many times...you are silly.¡± Jay said, ¡°Deal! I will be there.¡± Tina hung up right away. Jay stared at the ceiling for a long time. He wanted to check if he had been talking to her in real, and checked his call record on his cell phone once again. He blinked his eyes a couple of times and shook his head. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Jay felt as if he was looking at her, a smile on her face showing the dimples. It was impossible not to be in love with that expression she made. The day was 2 days in advance of Tina entering the clean room before Rocket Stumpalos of Mars Project One take off. Nobody knows exactly why, but all astronauts are required to be segregated from everybody and stay in the clean aseptic room for a week before the departure. Jay did what Tina asked for. He arrived in front of the Vision Mars building and got off from his car. Approximately 10 minutes had passed by. Suddenly a roaring sound of an internal-combustion engine was heard. An exploding sound occurred when air meets carbon inside a metal block. It was a rhythmical sound of an engine. A yellow colored sports car was approaching fast. It was none other than the 2009 Chevrolet Camaro. Tina was in the driving seat. parking breaker at the gate was down, but Tina refused to slow down. The parking breaker broke and flew away with a ¡°pow¡± sound. The sports car stopped in front of Jay. A visible skid-mark was drawn as the car stopped. It was Tina. Tina¡¯s Camaro roared its engine as it headed out. The two people arrived at cape road near the Pintail river. Tina kissed Jay as soon as she stopped the car. She reclined Jay¡¯s seat and climbed on top of him. Jay was surprised but willingly accepting. Tina went on without hesitating. Then, she stopped as if an emergency button was pushed upon, and stared into Jay¡¯s eyes. ¡°Would you believe in me if I tell you this is the first time I make love?¡± said Tina. Jay was searching for words to say. Tina did not wait for his answer and kissed Jay on the lips. ... After the moments of passion, Tina said as if talking to herself, ¡°I was alone in this world from the beginning. All alone.¡± Jay sighed. He regretted that he did not know much about Tina, and thought that he might not even be able to meet her again on earth. Tina continued, ¡°I was found in the ex border line area of North Korea and China. That was when I was only a tiny baby, less than 1 year old. No pictures, no letters, there was nothing with me. No, not nothing actually.¡± Tina pulled off a little ornament which was attached to her silver necklace. It was a coin with a hole in the middle. ¡°The baby was gripping this coin with her hand. The person who found me tried to open up her hand but she was holding onto it so tight that he wondered if she had a disabled hand or something,¡± said Tina.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. She passed through several tests and became a pilot, and before that she was a guitarist at a fusion punk group. Jay know these kind of facts about Tina but it was the first time he heard about the real Tina inside of her. ¡°My parents who had adopted me passed away. They were shot dead actually. I really do not have any warm childhood memory,¡± said Tina. Jay patted Tina gently on the back and said, ¡°Are you leaving because of that?¡± ¡°Hmm..yes, kind of. Out there, we are all alone,¡± said Tina. Tina was a lively and energetic person. Her Korean was not fluent, so Jay thought that perhaps her family immigrated to the States several decades ago, but never had he imagined that she was an orphan who nearly starved to death near a North Korea ¨C China borderline. ¡°Before saying goodbye to the blue planet, I wanted to leave a meaningful trace so that I could be remembered by someone,¡± Tina said with a pitiful look. Jay kissed Tina on her forehead as if putting a full stop onto Tina¡¯s monologue. Just for this moment, Jay wanted Tina to feel the warmth in his arms. When the two of them drove the car back to Vision Mars, the sun began to rise. Tina let Jay get off of her car, and showed him her crossed fingers. ¡°Cross. This is a sign of good luck. I am not sure who showed it to me, but this is my very first memory.¡± Tina raised her hands to her eyebrow, with her fingers still crossed. Then, she drove off without looking back. ... The sky was clear with no cloud in sight above the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 at the Merritt Islands, Florida. This complex was simultaneously planned with the Apollo project and thus, the Apollo 11 Saturn V rocket was launched right here ¨C a symbolic place in space history. The Rocket Stumpalos is now taking over the legend. Humankind had reached out for the moon and now they are challenging for the Mars. It is said that Space Odyssey has spent quite a sum of money to the parliament in order to launch at this launch complex. Instead of the Saturn series, The Falcon Heavy of Space X were in charge of taking the crews upto the orbit of the earth. This gigantic rocket made of three Falcon series tied up, having been stocked up on fuels and oxidants, was waiting for the launch. Each propellants had already been re-used more than 20 times. The main body was surrounded by a thin ice layer, due to liquid oxygen and methane. The live broadcast team were chatting among themselves while the count down proceeded. There was time left till the actual launch. No audio was on broadcast yet. ¡°I heard the Mars One Project will be merged,¡± said commentator. ¡°Is that so? Then, this launch would be their first and the last? I also heard about the rumour...¡± said the host. ¡°Yeah, same here. They don¡¯t have the capacity to send supplies to Mars. This is so damn crazy. Who on earth would take over such reckless project?¡± said commentator. ¡°We¡¯ll go live in 10 seconds. No more chatting,¡± the producer noticed the team. Jay took a day off work and was sitting on the front row of the launch observatory. He bought a telescope to see better. Jay knew that he cannot get anywhere near Tina nor could he wave his hand at her, but he desperately had to be there. That was all he could do. Jay drank water from his water bottle again and again, as he felt his mouth dry. Tina was seated at the very top part of that dangerous thing which was about to blast off. Rockets are the most monstrous creation mankind had invented. They were weapons at first... ¡°10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5 Engine start.¡± The 27 clustered merlin engine started to spit out fire simultaneously. Water spread from the launch pad in order to beat the heat, were immediately vaporized due to the massive fire. The unmanned camera fixed at the launch pad was quaking. People started shouting out the count down like a chorus. ¡°4, 3, 2, 1 Lift off.¡± When the launch pad let go, Falcon Heavy started moving slowly. The underneath of the rocket shone bright with orange light. The high pressure of oxidized energy from the chamber pushed off the massive weighted, the 1,420 ton rocket. People applauded aloud. The number indicated on the top right side of the live broadcast screen changed from minus to plus. ¡°May Mars One Project bring new hope to mankind...¡± the commentator siad. At that moment, Falcon Heavy tilted sideways, and started collapsing. It was the most dreadful instant. The rocket hit the launch pad so hard that a spark bright enough to blind the eyes soared aloud. Then, as the liquid fuel and oxygen oxidized, everything was gulped down. Terrible explosion and blinding light blew up and flared altogether. At the top of the rocket, the command module¡¯s emergency escape engine did activate. However, the module did not succeed in separating from the rocket¡¯s main body. Everybody got petrified. They could not believe in the scene unfolding before their eyes. Jay screamed. He ran out of the observatory building. Yet, all the doors connected to the launch pad were already locked tight. Jay pushed the guard and tried to approach nearer to the barbed-wired fence. He heard the CLUNCK sound of the gun loading. ¡°One more step closer, I will shoot,¡± the security guard warned. Jay knew. It was meaningless. Even if he reach the launch pad, nothing changes. It¡¯s now over and nothing could change what had happened. Tina, Tina disappeared into the bright orange colored fire. Jay wailed. 06 Two-Legged Creatures without a Soul Chapter 6 Two-Legged Creatures without a Soul Autumn and winter had passed by, and again came the spring. Jay¡¯s self driving car drove out from the Lincoln Tunnel which connects New Jersey and Manhattan. Jay glanced outside the window while reading a paperback book titled . The spring was in the air and out in the streets. People at the bus terminal were dressed in colorful pastel tone clothes, as light as the spring breeze. Last year¡¯s spring and summer was alike 1960¡¯s when the Apollo Project took a big step forward to reach out its dream to the moon. Space Odyssey¡¯s Mars One Project had made everyone dream. It was a dream that the red planet, Mars will become the land of humankind. The grand prelude of the space invasion myth. That is why the trauma of the rocket explosion was as massive as the puffed up dream. Jay¡¯s continuous investigative articles tracking the cause of the explosion has aroused a huge stir. The Falcon series from Space X was well known for its minimal and economical engineering. Nevertheless, the Space Odyssey¡¯s Stumpalos took out the essential parts in order to reduce weight. Many professionals have testified that it¡¯s remarkable how the launch vehicle was standing upright and not fall apart. However, the poorly modified vehicle helplessly failed to endure the strong Merlin Engine¡¯s lift-off thrust. Jay had left and moved on to New York Post. He had been offered a journalist position by New York Post. Jay¡¯s Mars One Project special articles had attracted their attention. He was noticed for sure, but not applauded. Actually it was the opposite. Due to pouring protest messages, Jay had to change his mobile phone number several times. Same applied to social media. When one is with a more famous press company, the easier it is to get access to news source. A journalist is like a merchant trading facts using his name, he thought. There were more investigations he needed to do. The most crucial secret was not solved yet. At the end of the corridor, someone was looking at him. Red curly hair with robust body. It was Kelly in charge of editorial for space industry. Jay did not expect a warm welcome at this company since he was a newcomer. Still, people here were acting rather infantile towards him constantly keeping him in check. ¡°Hey, you. You become famous and you get high and mighty, huh?¡± Kelly teased Jay, as if he had been waiting for Jay to come. He was about to pick a fight. ¡°Have you ever thought about how the space industry companies, its stakeholders and workers would have been affected by your article? Well, I guess that¡¯s something you didn¡¯t learn at the lousy magazine company,¡± said Kelly. Jay went on his way as if he heard nothing. The pouring sunlight in the corridor made Jay narrow his eyes, which made them look more piercing. Kelly said in a loud voice, ¡°Hey, you chinky eyes! Do you hear me?¡± To Jay, his article was not written to fulfill a refine value such as ¡°in pursuit of truth¡±. He wrote them to follow the command of his inner self. The investigative articles, to Jay, was an utterly personal revenge. Jay changed his walking direction. He put his face right in front of Kelly¡¯s, so near that his blast of nostrils could be felt. ¡°Maybe some people lost their jobs because of my articles, yes. But there were so many lives sacrificed,¡± Jay¡¯s voice was low but icy cold. Kelly falteringly moved back. Jay remembered making love to Tina; but he knew that wasn¡¯t the point. When Jay first laid eyes on Tina, he felt a kind of an invisible link existing between them. Somewhat like the quantum entanglement - although one is divided and separated far apart in space, one part can feel the other part¡¯s change and reflects it ¨C Tina had visited New York once and they had jogged together at the Bryant Park in West 42nd Street. Jay had never imagined he would meet Tina in front of the Space Dot building since she had been rejecting Jay¡¯s numerous requests for an interview. Tina¡¯s voice was still lingering in Jay¡¯s ears. He needed to find out the truth, that the explosion was not a mere accident. Jay came back to his desk and had a cup of strong coffee. Unlike other journalists¡¯ desk where there are piles of reports, references and books, Jay¡¯s desk was clean, Jay believed that the truth does not lie in papers that most people quote from.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. He remembered the message he received this morning, a message from an unknown source. What Kelly had said to Jay, unlike its intention, triggered a thought which hovered in Jay¡¯s head. Jay took out his phone from his pocket. Scutum Fidei It was a short message consisting of two words. They were latin words. It indicated the shield which represents ¡°Trinity¡± of Christianity: Shield of the Trinity. Jay thought that these words may refer to a specific ¡®place¡¯. Perhaps the New York Trinity Church. During his years at Space Dot, he once did an anonymous interview at the church. Perhaps it¡¯s just a prank message. However, since the messaging system is based on block chain, it¡¯s near to impossible to hide the sender information. As for Jay, the opportunity cost was not so big since the place was just a few block away from where he was sitting. Worth the investment..he thought. Timing was strange. The government had started their investigation but things were fizzling out because the subject and the object of investigation were in close relationship, not to mention also the journalists of the field. What Kelly had said was not true. Surprisingly, Space Odyssey did not lose out due to the explosion of Stumpalos, since they had joined several insurances here and there. Moreover, there were not much people who lost their jobs. In fact, at the Wall Street, there were rumours that some undertaking fund was prepared for the Space Odyssey. Only the sacrificed victims were pitiful. ¡°Tina didn¡¯t even have a single family member...¡± One¡¯s death is remembered by those who live on. Jay touched the little coin with a hole in it. This was the only trace left of Tina. An aluminium coin; the front was decorated with flower patterns and on the backside were Korean writings. Before the inauguration of the federal government, the Democratic People¡¯s Republic of Korea (DPRK) had printed the coin. Tina had tied a string to the coin and hung it like a necklace. Tina said to Jay, as she took off the coin necklace and handed it to him. ¡°The reason I kept this coin till now is out of revenge. I had to survive. Living a great life would be a revenge to those who abandoned me¡± The word ¡®coin¡¯ comes from a latin word ¡®divide¡¯(cuneus). Jay thought it was an outrageous irony. Of course, parents who abandoned their baby would not have thought of such profound meaning. When Tina stared at the coin on Jay''s hand, she had tears welled up in her eyes. She said, ¡°I don¡¯t need to think about it anymore.¡± Jay got off at the Fulton Street subway station. He thought it may be a good idea to walk a few blocks. New York is no longer called the ¡®economic center of the world¡¯, but it seems that the city had recovered its old fame as one of the most touristic city. At afar, the Trinity church showed up. The light reddish brown building boasted its lean body among the skyscrapers, matching well with the blue sky behind it. What is the boundary between life and death? Even during the 9/11 attacks, the church building remained unharmed. People who were sheltered in the church at the time were all safe. However, the apple tree which stood in the church yard for over a century had fallen. A large cement part of another bombed building flew right at the tree and made it fall. ¡°If people had not taken shelter in the church....would the tree still be alive?¡± It was a useless thought without any correlation. Jay arrived at the church yard, but he had no idea whom he will be meeting, what he will be seeing. The person who had sent him the message, would have prepared the next clue, he thought. Jay glanced at the old tombstones in the church yard. At that moment, the bell of the Trinity church rang. A flock of doves flew off. ¡°Be around nearby. Don¡¯t go too far away,¡± An old man said to a boy he was looking after. He then turned to Jay and said, ¡°You seem to be looking for someone.¡± The old man was wearing a wide pair of jeans and a tattered checked jacket. His backbone was well curved. Jay did not think that the message was sent by this old man. ¡°No,¡± Jay answered. The old man said with a whimsical smile on his face, ¡°Jay Robinson. I was waiting for you.¡± The old man stood up from the bench with a help of his cane and held onto Jay¡¯s sleeves to ask him in, ¡°Let¡¯s get inside.¡± Inside the church, there were people praying here and there. Even though it was a weekday daytime, there were quite a lot of young people. The old man sat on the right side, first row. He asked Jay to sit across him. It was difficult for Jay to understand what was happening, but decided to listen to what the old man had to say. ¡°How do you know...¡± asked Jay. The old man just smiled and said, ¡°It wasn¡¯t an accident. Everything went on exactly as planned.¡± Jay said with an absurd look on his face, ¡°What...¡± The old man continued, ¡°You must have suspected it..since there¡¯s something fishy.¡± It wasn¡¯t a conversation, it was a monologue. He said, ¡°You¡¯re going to Boston Mechanics, right? You¡¯re gonna see a new picture there.¡± Jay had met numerous informants in the past but with the old man¡¯s way of communicating, it was impossible to proceed a meaningful interview and gather new information. The old man said, ¡°A two feet creature without a soul lands on the red planet...¡± Jay interrupted the conversation, ¡°I don¡¯t think I can listen to you further...If you¡¯d excuse me...¡± As Jay was about to stand up, the old man laughed out loud. Jay was bewildered by his sudden laughter in the pious environment. Jay looked around but the other people did not careless as if they were all wearing an earplug. It was strange. Nobody even raised their heads and looked towards their direction. The old man said, ¡°Let¡¯s say I am X.¡± The old man tapped on Jay¡¯s foot with his cane. ¡°You lack patience. Belief as well,¡± he said as if he were scolding a little child. The old man stood up. He spine was no longer curved. He was taller than Jay. He looked down at Jay as if saying that he was pitiful. ¡°Tina is alive.¡± The old man walked on. Everyone who were sitting at the church stood up altogether. They were like a troop of army. The old man walked real fast out of the church corridor. Other people surrounded the old man like a curtain. They left the church in a flash of a second. Jay followed the old man to the doorway. There were nobody outside the door. They were all gone. Jay repeated what the strange old man had said with a stunned look, ¡°Tina is alive.¡± Jay thought that perhaps he had heard the voice before from somewhere else. 07 A New Plan Chapter 7 A New Plan Yankee Division Highway, about to exit at Exit 27. Nearing the final destination. The self-driving car lowered its speed and headed towards the robot manufacturing company, the Boston Mechanics at the Waltham, Massachusettes. Jay looked out of the window. As there were many one-story buildings, the sky, embracing puffy clouds, seemed widely spanned out. Around 50 people were picketing, shouting out loud and stamping their feet. Many of them were so called the ¡°L Generation (Neo Luddite Generation)¡±. It referred to the young generation whose jobs were taken away by machines. They were the victims. ¡°We need jobs!¡± Jay reserved the self-driving car to meet him at the same spot later, and then got off. Although there were not many people participating the demonstration, the ambiance was rather intense. Jay took some pictures of the demonstrators, and sent them over to the head office. The human-like robots, namely, the ¡°Robotas¡° manufactured at small to medium sized factories of the Boston Mechanics penetrated into the market from around mid 2020¡¯s ¨C right after the time when the Coronavirus pandemic swept the world. Robotas were made similar to human body, accompanying two arms and legs, thus, it was unnecessary for the factory owners to redesign the manufacturing process. The seats where human used to occupy were simply replaced with the Robotas. Moreover, Boston Mechanics adopted an aggressive price dumping policy which brought them successful expansion of their products. A non-grumbling worker who need no vacation, no break. Only for $30,000 a year! This copy was strong enough to impress business owners in an era when the strategy of moving production plants to a place where labor costs were cheap no longer worked. The once settled flow did not care to change. Service industry, where only the kiosks used to be automatized, could no longer fend off the change. Human ¡°labor¡±, in a traditional sense, is long gone. ¡°Robota¡± which comes from the word ¡°slave¡±, took our ¡°arduous work¡±, but it did not make us humans become happy. Moreover, the social system was not fast enough to catch up with the change. The basic income policy did not receive congressional support in many regions, and workplace had decreased in record-breaking numbers. Some broadcasters connected the demonstration live, ¡°There are assumptions that a private organization, the Humanity, is maneuvering the demonstration behind the scene. Some even predict that the mass unemployment of L Generation may develop into a terrorist act. The word ¡®Robota¡¯ first appeared in Karel Capek¡¯s play in which the robots gain power and massacre all human. At Massachusettes Waltham, this is Harry Cooper, CNN.¡± Jay walked past the picketing squad and entered the Boston Mechanics building. Two armed guards wearing bulletproof vests, verified Jay¡¯s invitation and allowed him to pass. Inside the building, Robotas wearing uniforms just like humans, guided the guests. The reason Robotas were only serving inside the building was in order not to rouse the picketing squad. One of the journalist said, ¡°Did you hear about today¡¯s announcement?¡± His Colleague replied, ¡°Something about a new vision, but I don¡¯t know any details. Some analysts said that it will be about expanding the factories in China...¡± Jay did not know much about today¡¯s event either. Robot industry was one of his scope of coverage. He searched for related reports on stock trading and flow of funds but could not find anything concrete. ''How did X know about this...'' Jay thought. Jay thought about X whom he had met at the Trinity Church. He assumed that predicting the future just like a psychic may also be possible. Jay was already a well known journalist in social media due to his continuous investigative articles, Boston Mechanics promoted that they will be doing a grand press conference. Moreover, the fact that the deceased Mars One Project pilot¡¯s name was Tina, was also no secret. The managing director of PR, Nicole Jacqueline appeared on stage. As the pin lights were spotting onto her, her blonde hair shone shining bright. She said, ¡°I am sure you are wondering about the reason we invited you all here. Well, but I cannot give you a hint. My boss told be this morning that if I did, I¡¯d be fired right away.¡± As Jacqueline made a joke, the audience applauded and laughed. Jacqueline¡¯s red lips were sensually articulating the words she spoke. ¡°As you see, I am still rather young. Not ready to retire yet,¡± said Jacqueline. She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Today¡¯s event will be more of a ¡®presentation¡¯ than a press conference. May I introduce you Mr. Howard Mason, the President of Boston Mechanics!¡± Howard Mason walked out of the dark onto the stage. As his body was infected by the Charcot-Marie-Tooth-disease, he was wearing the exoskeleton suit product developed by his own company to keep his body upright. The signal from his brain went through the brain-computer interface up to his exoskeleton. A malicious hereditary disease has invaded his body. His arms and legs were weak as his motor and sensory nerves were damaged. He could not even walk by himself.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Howard Mason gave an presentation, ¡°Boston Mechanics will stop manufacturing the Robotas.¡± His first sentence was shocking enough to utterly quiet down the press conference hall, for exactly 5 seconds. Then, on every channel appeared a breaking news caption: ¡°Boston Mechanics announces to stop manufacturing Robotas¡±. The news was seen by the squad outside the building as well. The demonstrators could not hide their confusion. They did picket to stop the manufacture, but never did they imagine that the company will actually make such decision. The audience inside the building was waiting for Howard to continue his speech. ¡° ''The eternal progress of technology for humanity'', We have never forgotten even for one second the founding corporate philosophy of Boston Mechanics." The history of Boston Mechanics ¨C from year 2010 when Boston Mechanics first manufactured 2 legged walking robots as an assignment from DARPA(Defence Advanced Research Project Agency) and their continuous developments and activities ¨C were shown on the grand screen on stage, accompanied by sublime music. ¡°We had hoped that Robotas will co-exist with humanity and bring a better future for us all....but we realized this was such a naive thought. The owners who employed Robotas were just busy taking away human positions, thus, in contrast to our hope, Robotas have become the enemy of humanity.¡± The screen showed a video of Robotas being brutally attacked. People smashed Robotas¡¯ heads, opened their stomachs, broke their arms and legs and poured on the gasoline to burn them up. The video was shot purely from the viewpoint of the robots. However, Jay knew that the reality was quite the opposite. The automation which took away human labor, pushed them to suffer in extreme poverty. Howard Mason spoke eloquently using big hand gestures, and his oily face glowed brightly upon the focused light. Howard had fully enjoyed the time span of Robotas being the enemy of humankind. Boston Mechanics had already made a fortune with the ¡®Robota series¡¯ and licenses were being extensively distributed. A Korean conglomerate, Sam Hwan Electronics, was deeply involved with this situation. Sam Hwan Electronics covered the production of GPU(Graphics Processing Unit) known for its vertical internal specialization, special alloys for producing robots, and also the area of artificial skin. That is to say, Robota production would not be influenced with the Boston Mechanics¡¯ halt of its production system. The quarterly patent fee for Robotas exceeded fifty billion dollars. They were obsessed with achieving exclusive patents from worldwide ¨C patents concerning two-foot robots, movement of hand abd arm, as well as its AI. Boston Mechanics was deemed as the most exceptional and monstrous a organization, on top of being a ¡®Patent Troll¡¯ in the market. ¡°We are about to map out the future. As we always have, we will take our first step in the area never set foot by humankind,¡± said Howard. Suddenly the stage became dark. People started to whisper at each other. ¡°What are they thinking? What is it they want?¡± said one of the participants. ¡°Are they seriously gonna manufacture sex robots?¡± The sex-robots which were modified from the Robota series by changing the firmware were extremely popular. The related industry has immensely expanded. At the spot where Howard Mason was standing, appeared a red and round 3 dimension hologram video. It was none other than the 4th planet of the solar system, the Mars. Boston Mechanics was closing down the robot business and announcing to step into the space industry. Boston Mechanics was to become the new owner of Space Odyssey. Jay froze in surprise. Jay thought, ''Is this what X had mentioned?'' Some people who were at the press conference stood up and applauded. Most others were perplexed but soon joined to applaud for the company¡¯s new announcement. Emotional contagion, it was. The first group of people who stood up and applauded were probably paid for the act. From the dark side of the stage, Howard Mason¡¯s powerful voice was heard, ¡°From tomorrow, July 20th we plan to change our company name to Dragonfly Inc. Ever since 1969 we have been dreaming; a dream that depraved politicians and bureaucratic NASA could not fulfill, a dream that Space Odyssey could not realize. From now on, we will take charge and make the great dream of ''Human migration to Mars'' become reality.¡± The gigantic logo of ¡°Dragonfly¡± which looked more like a dragon than a dragonfly, appeared overwhelmingly over the audience. It overlapped with image of Mars on the stage. Everybody applauded even louder but Jay was so confused that he could not hear anything. If what X had told him was the truth, then what he said about Tina may also be real. Maybe Tina was alive after all. ¡°If she is alive, where could she be? Then, what is buried at the Barrancas National Cemetery?¡± said Jay in a low voice. Jay¡¯s heart began to pound. The demonstrators were watching Howard Mason¡¯s press conference, forgetting the fact that they had to shout slogans against him. A man on the right side of the demonstrators with white shirt and jeans spoke to a woman colleague. He was tall and had a lean figure. He said, ¡°Christina, would you organize the rest?¡± ¡°No problem, Hugh.¡± answered Christina. Hugh smiled slightly raising his dark eyebrows and winked at Christina. He got out of the line, pulled out his mobile phone and spoke to someone. A self-driving car arrived in front of him. ¡°Let¡¯s go to Bowling Green, New York,¡± said Hugh. We will arrive in 3 and a half hour at I-95. The self-driving car entered the expressway. The man had heard that the private stocks of Boston Mechanics were being traded at exorbitantly high price in the futures market. He was getting bad vibes. Futures, in principle, is a gamble betting on one side of the two number of cases. The most high-level information is present at the future markets. There must have been confidential reports on the side purchasing the Boston Mechanics - that Boston Mechanics have manufactured something extraordinary. "But then, they stop manufacturing the Robotas?" said Hugh. Howard Mason¡¯s announcement did not make sense. Either the information was wrong, or if not, Howard Mason was using a trick. It was time to meet X. 08 Base Selene Chapter 8 Base Selene The third planet of the solar system, the Earth, was shining in transparent blue under the sunlight. The clouds containing water drops were peacefully floating like the feathers of a bird, like a sculpted relief along the sky. Distanced afar from man and manmade structures, they seemed to conceal all trivial emotions of life. Base Selene was a temporary launch pad which Dragonfly put above the earth¡¯s orbit. Onto the long cylindrical main body, the several modules which were soon to depart to Mars, were parked like grapes on its stalk. The place was similar to the gateway which NASA built for the construction of a lunar base, but compared to ISS(International Space Station) it was smaller in scale. When the preparation for departure to Mars was complete, the command module ''Victoria'' was planned to fly to the Base Selene ; and like a freight car connecting to a passenger car, it would be inter-joined one by one with modules docked at Selene. To help the procedure, two robotic arms were installed at Base Selene. The freight spaceship which departed to Mars in advance also stopped by Selene. There was one person who supervised the place. Igor was brushing his teeth while humming his favorite song. He occasionally frowned his face since he could never get used to swallowing the toothpaste foam. Today was the day which the freight ship carrying water and food were to arrive. A message has arrived, "Base Selene, this is RKB-11. Request to activate the docking sequencer." Igor answered, "Allowed RKB-11, come in line with Code 1135. Sequencer activating.¡± The Israeli RKB is a reusable space shuttle. The shape of it was similar to a triangle wing plane. The shuttle transported freights within the boundary of earth¡¯s low orbit. At the end of each side were attached two engines, and in the center was a port for its docking. The pilot of the RKB said, ¡°Nearing. 30 meters, 25 meters, 20 meters....¡± Outside the Cupola window was the RKB; on its side, the letters ''RKB-11'' were distinctly written. "Good job!" said Igor. RKB finished its docking at Selene. Everything went on smoothly. The pilot who walked over to Selene took off the helmet. Long and silky brown hair fell to the microgravity space. Bulky Igor approached the pilot as if swimming over. ¡°How are you, Igor!¡± The RKB pilot spoke while running her hand through her hair. She had a scar beneath the left side of her chin. Her white face was radiant and beautiful but at the same time stubborn and pale. Igor was grinning ever so broadly and held out his hand. ¡°Did you bring what I asked for?¡± Igor asked. The pilot looked towards Igor. Her blue eyes twinkled. With her gloves still on, she rubbed his beard and tapped his cheek. She said, ¡°You are like a kid waiting for a toy. Aren¡¯t I enough for you?¡± Igor shrugged and backed his hand, ¡°You¡¯re not staying here long enough.¡± The pilot halted pulling down her zipper as she was taking off her pressure suit and said, ¡±Is that so?¡° Igor looked at her beggingly. ¡°No, no. So sorry, it¡¯s my fault.¡± He pleaded. The pilot giggled playfully and took out a small plastic bottled filled with liquid. She handed it to Igor, ¡°Made in Russia. 90%.¡± Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.¡°Wow!!¡± Igor shouted in joy. ¡°Be careful. It might burn your throat as you swallow it,¡± said the pilot. Igor held the pilot¡¯s head and started pouring kisses. Igor took her to a dark corner. The light was off at the maintenance block. Igor fixed his two feet onto the lower rail and hugged her by the waist. Soon, their heavy breath filled the confined space. They had no worry that others might hear them. Their clothes were floating in space as if dancing waltz. Igor drank a cup of vodka and fell asleep. It was an anesthetic drugged vodka. The pilot was moving fast. She held a flash on her right hand and hurriedly searched for something at the Base Selene. Finally, in between the control pinion and the carbon dioxide remover, she had found that something. It was the A4 paper sized supervisor personal device. As she touched the screen, the Dragonfly logo appeared followed by a message asking for iris and fingerprint recognition. It was a bio-security system requiring blood running eyes and fingers. However, the lock was released immediately. The pilot skillfully connected the monitoring tool to the D-type link and searched for the data inside. ¡°This is it.¡± : What she found from the device was the freight list which Dragonfly has sent to Mars. The pilot blinked her eyes and stared fixedly at the list full of numbers. On her pupils she had on the contact lens type scanner. Her face stiffened, ''This is really weird.'' The system monitoring device on top of the control panel started to beam out a red light. It meant that the station on Earth was sending a signal to Base Selene. They were about to forcedly remote control Base Selene. The pilot woke Igor up in a hurry, "Igor! Wake up! A calling from Earth!!" The drug was strong but lasted for a short time. It ran out of effect at just the right time. Even when Igor¡¯s blood be tested, the anesthesia component would have been decomposed in metabolism. "Oh, my head hurts... Did I sleep for a long time?" Igor turned on the light switch and arranged the cabin. ¡°Selene, What happened?¡± An angry voice was heard from the Earth''s control center. Igor answered in ease, ¡°Nothing happened.¡± ¡°The communication system and the CCTV blacked out,¡± said the control center. Igor replied ¡°They are now restored.¡± Person in charge at the Earth¡¯s control center lost his nerve, ¡°Why? Why does this happen?¡± Igor also shouted, ¡°It took me hours fixing all these stuff. Look who¡¯s snapping!¡± Igor turned off the communication switch once again. ¡°Is it OK to do that?¡± said the pilot, looking at Igor with a curious expression. ¡°I told you. It¡¯s a weird place here. It¡¯s OK,¡± said Igor. ¡°What¡¯s so weird about this place?¡± the pilot asked again. Igor turned serious just for a second and looked up at the pilot. Then, he shook his head and said, ¡°Christina, You may become dangerous if I speak.¡± Christina stroke Igor¡¯s hair like stroking a pet dog. Igor put his face onto Christina¡¯s breast. ¡°I need to go,¡± Christina pushed away Igor. ¡°When my duty¡¯s over, I will come to you,¡± said Igor. Christina laughed, ¡°Lol..¡± Christina put on her pressure suit and helmet. She crossed over to RKB. The hatch locked. Selene¡¯s docking port pushed RKB away as if with a power of spring. The two ships got farther away from each other at the speed of 15cm per second. Christina picked up something like a two-way radio, ¡°I got it,. I will meet you in person and hand it over to you. Since we are not connecting via a repeater, I think we are safe. It is rather....serious. See you.¡± When the distance with Base Selene became about 20meters apart, RKB operated the engine. It was a preparation to jump into Earth¡¯s atmosphere. Everything was confusing. In the beginning, the plan of Humanity ¨C where Christina belonged to - was quite simple. As long as Howard Mason was alive and well, he will continue manufacturing Robotas which will be a threat to humans, so he was too dangerous a man to be kept alive. Although the company name was changed to Dragonfly from Boston Mechanics, the president and the management remained the same. Their suspicious conduct did not change either. When Hugh wanted to go under cover, she did not stop him as everyone reasonably suspected that Dragonfly was hatching a plot through its Mars Two project. However, things changed. Hugh and Christina thrust into a situation difficult to cope with. The front part of the RKB main body¡¯s heat-dissipating tiles glowed in red. Across Christina¡¯s gaze, outside the observation window, plasma fire fluttered freely as if dancing. Such hysterical dance filled Christina''s heads with distracting thoughts. 09 Journey to Death Chapter 9 Journey to Death The Mars Camp One situated near the West Sea satellite launch station was in disorder. The reality show, was about to select its last winner. The survived teams¡¯ tension and expectation, eliminated teams¡¯ disappointment coexisted. The last four teams were getting prepared for their final mission. It was a task to operate the spacecraft manually at Earth¡¯s orbit and dock it. Some of the team members hugged each other as they felt regretful not to have achieved their best scores. ¡°Captain, I will go for a run,¡± Hugh approached Raye. She said, ¡°You didn¡¯t forget the time, did you?¡± Hugh answered, ¡°Of course not. Do you think I will be late for the briefing?¡± Hugh kissed Raye on her forehead. Raye raised her fist towards Hugh. Hugh smiled playfully and walked back. A truck drove into the camp. As the stowage opened, men who seemed like the Mars Camp One employees lifted up the baggages of the eliminated team members. ¡°Surveillance camera bypassed,¡± a signal came to Hugh¡¯s personal mobile phone. ¡°Noted,¡± answered Hugh. He got off the road and hid his body in between the lodgings. Christina, his colleague at Humanity, a private organization, had arrived before he did. Christina covered one of her eye and had bandaged up her left hand. She looked terrible as her face and hand were swollen. Hugh asked, ¡°What happened to your head? And your hand?¡± Christina answerd, ¡°I know it¡¯s incubated at a culture room, but I really didn¡¯t want to have his eyeballs and fingers on me any second longer. So, I dug them out as soon as I came down.¡± To achieve her goal, Christina would stop at nothing. She gathered the supervisor¡¯s DNA, duplicated them and transplanted them into her body. This is how she broke through the security system of Dragonfly which is the most notorious even among the smartest hackers. She actually had Igor¡¯s eyes and fingers. Hugh said, ¡°Was this the only way?¡± ¡°It¡¯s none of your concern, isn¡¯t it?¡± Christina answerd. ¡°You mean...is it that you still...¡± said Hugh. Christina cut the words of him, ¡°No time for talking nonsense. Concentrate. I scanned this.¡± Christina handed Hugh a cassette tape. It had a picture of a lady¡¯s face in a black background, and the title was ¡°Sinawi 1st Album¡±. Hugh received tha new tape and handed Christina the identical looking tape. She said, ¡°Since it was impossible to understand, I examined the data over and over again. But the result was always the same. Seriously, the previous freight sent to Mars, hardly had any food on it. The amount was no way near enough for four crew members. This way, the crews will die before the next freight ship arrives at Mars." Christina twisted her face and held her left wrist with her right hand. Christina felt her replanted finger beginning to throb. ¡°What does this mean...maybe they calculated the hibernation time wrong?¡± asked Hugh. ¡°No, no way. The pre-sent freight was like that. As for the next freight, I had no time to approach the data. Not only that, there are only 2 outdoor clothing sets. Other amenities are same as that. They are NOT prepared for 4 people,¡± answerd Christina. ¡°Then the crews die? They flew all the way to Mars!¡± said Hugh. ¡°That¡¯s correct. If you cannot make the Victoria do a U-turn and come back. Wait, there is a second choice. You can jump off, before the ship goes too far. That¡¯s the answer,¡± said Christina, with a grim look on her face. Hugh asked back, frowning as if it were nonsense, ¡°What? Jump off?¡± ¡°Yeah, then at least you will rotate around the Earth¡¯s orbit. We can track you. But if you leave the Earth and enter the orbit that leads to Mars, then we can never follow you with RKB,¡± She said. All of a sudden, Christina hugged Hugh with her right arm which was not hurt. ¡°Do you really have to go?¡± : She hugged Hugh, but Hugh stood still. After a while, Christina pushed him away and said, ¡°I really regret I got to know you. As much as having recruited the housework robot which killed my mom.¡± Christina turned back. ¡°Christina!¡± Hugh called her but she ran without looking back. She got on a self-driving truck. As she shut the door, tears fell down from her left eye, the eye which did not have surgery. She didn¡¯t cry because of Hugh¡¯s response. She was crying because she had a bad feeling, a feeling that this maybe the last time she meets Hugh. However, she also knew she could not stop him from going.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Although Hugh did not accept her love, they may remain as friends. She thought that if she were to lose him, then she would not be able to speak to a human, ever again. X was not trustworthy. Moreover, if Hugh could not come back alive, then Humanity will no longer sustain. ... Dragonfly¡¯s lunar base Out Post was in the Aitken Basin near the South pole of the moon¡¯s hidden side. This was a place where the nonsense rumor spread that there were gasoline underneath the surface. In the middle of the base was a black hexahedron with a 1:4:9 ratio. Its towering height went near 90 meters. It was built by Howard Mason to commemorate the <2001: Space Odyssey>, inspired by Monolith, but rather resembled a gigantic tombstone. There was a dock, a research office, and a tourist office in the base; the research and tourist office were under protection of a shielding material for blockage of the cosmic rays. A RKB approached to the deck. The fuel-sage with an oil-pressured shock absorber connected itself to a docking port and transformed its upright form and descended to the surface. Nicole Jacqueline came out from the opening hatch. Jacqueline was wearing a brand new pressure suit which resembled a reddish leather suit. She was slender, fitting in well with the suit. Two Robotas with their uniforms stood in front of her. They led Jacqueline through a long corridor to a small black room. "Welcome, Jacqueline,¡° a voice came from the ceiling with a bright lights. Jacqueline blinked her eyes due to the lights. Her pupil shrunk from the lights, not enabling her to see anything. ¡°I am not used to it yet¡± ¡°No worries. Of course,¡± the voice was soft and greasy. ¡°There is a chair. Kindly sit,¡± The lights shone onto the metal stool in the center of the room. ¡°I was wondering why you chose to help,¡± the voice said. Jacqueline intentionally smiled a wide-open smile and said, ¡°Why so curious?¡± It said, ¡°Everytime, I wish to know why people make such choices; including you, of course. Until now, I had no reason to know, but now, I wonder why. For sure, I''m not ''totally the same being'' as before.¡± Jacqueline raised her second finger of her right hand and put the finger on her lips. This was what she often did when she contemplated. ¡°Well. For me, it seemed interesting,¡± said Jacqueline. ¡°Is that so? You may be accused of being a murderer,¡± said the voice. ¡°I am not that stupid,¡± answered Jacqueline. One side of the wall lightened up with white. Finally, a screen showing a certain point of Earth¡¯s orbit appeared. It was Base Selene. The voice said, ¡°It will be a noble sacrifice. They are people already prepared for death.¡± ¡°Hmm...I am worried about certain things,¡± said Jacqueline. She wanted to share some of the information she recently gathered, but there was no need to do that. ¡°You mean these?¡± said the voice. On the screen was the RKB which was returning to Earth after having been separated from Base Selene. Christina who was connecting to Hugh through satellite communication device appeared clearly. Jacqueline¡¯s face expression stiffened. ¡°I simulated it already. Their acts...whatever they do, the result remains the same,¡± said the voice. ¡°If you say so, yes. Then, why did you call me?¡± asked Jacqueline. The screen went off. The voice said, ¡°You know, don¡¯t you? My twin brother who disrupts everything I do?¡± Jacqueline nodded. It continued, ¡°Think about it. We are monozygotic twins, but how come this genetic trait did not turn up in him? Why do I have this genetic trait? That, I wish to know.¡± It''s greasy voice seemed like a predator¡¯s roaring. The soft tone of it''s voice was as cold as ice. ¡°Well, I suppose that curse brought me here. It made me push myself to the extreme. No matter how many times I try to figure out the reason, I just can''t understand why the bad gene had been selectively expressed to me.¡± said the voice. ¡°That is the medical field. I am not a doctor,¡± said Jacqueline. There was a dead silence for a few seconds. The voice said, ¡°That is correct...yes, you are not a doctor. Nor a biologist, nor a programmer, nor a psychologist, nor a robotics engineer. Not even a pilot. Simply put, you are nothing.¡± Jacqueline detected that something was wrong. ¡°But...you know too much about this project. About me as well,¡± said the voice. Everything became faint. Oxygen was decreasing. Jacqueline blacked out and fell to the ground. 10 Interview with a Superstar Chapter 10 Interview with a Superstar Jay Robinson was riding a self-driving car which was on highway I-95. He was looking into his personal device, the documents which he was finishing in preparation for the interview. The level-5 self-driving function brought freedom to the riders. Unlike the long existed philosophical debate, on whom one should save ¨C the rider or the pedestrian - the ¡®dilemma situation¡¯ need not occur since the method of people using the car has totally changed. When moving to New York Post, Jay expected that he will be able to access on information more easily, but things did not turn out that way. His extensive data search ended without much gain. He researched thoroughly but nothing beneficial came up. Ayanami Rei did not have any connection with Tina. Tina told him she was found at the ex. borderline between North Korea and China, but Rei was born from Japanese parents in Kyoto, Japan. Rei came to U.S when she was 10 years old. It was the time when many Japanese conglomerates were leaning and thus lots of competent employees flew out of Japan. Rei¡¯s social media records during her teenage years still existed. There was nothing much to find there. From the records, it was easy to recognize that Rei and Tina are definitely not the same person. Before Rei lost her parents from a car accident, they were one happy family. When Jay found out that Rei played the electric guitar with a power-code, he got excited. However, the power-code playing was totally basic, that is, playing the fifth chord using one¡¯s left forefinger and ring finger. It was uncomparable to Tina¡¯s funky and speedy solo performance. Despite these objective situations, what X had said hovered in Jay¡¯s head. He wondered if Rei¡¯s past may all be fake. He downloaded Rei¡¯s videos and ran it through the deep fake system. Jay blamed himself for being so outrageously suspicious. He also thought that maybe meeting Tina and spending time with Tina may all have been a delusion. The day the interview budget was approved, the New York Post editor called Jay to come to his office and said, "This is the last chance." The editor was sharp, competent and had clear values. Jay was lost in all directions, thus, decided to go for a straightforward tactic. He asked Dragonfly for an interview. He received their answer when the audition program neared to the climax. The return email came from Nicole Jacqueline. She asked for a big amount of interview fee. ¡°As an editor and a journalist, I regret my decision first time in 30 years, that I admitted you in the team,¡± the editor said. Jay listened to the editor. He had no words in reply. The editor¡¯s expressed himself through implicit sentences. If Jay gets kicked out of New York Post, he thought that it would be difficult to continue working as a journalist. He wasn¡¯t even sure if he wanted to. "Thank you for giving me the opportunity to interview," Jay replied plainly. While Jay returned to his seat from the editor¡¯s room, he opened his chest and walked straight. He didn¡¯t want to yield to everyone¡¯s blaming gaze. Jay wasn¡¯t surprised by Dragonfly asking for an interview fee. They were already making lucrative business such as sponsorship, virtual advertisement and re-broadcasting fee, in everything they set their hands on. Yet, Jay did not realize the trick behind it. A self-driving car brought Jay to the old Boston Mechanics, currently Dragonfly¡¯s main building. The building built with glass and steel frame, under the rain looked like a castle made of ice. At the front entrance of building, Robotas dressed in guard uniforms guided him in. The meeting room was at the very end of the 1st floor. It was only when he entered the room, that he realized he had been tricked. In the meeting room, other journalists including those from , Jay¡¯s previous post were all there. ¡°Jay, long time no see!¡± ¡°Oh...New York Post scoop reporter is here.¡± Thinking back, in the message exchanged with Nicole Jacqueline, there was no word noting ¡°exclusive¡± anywhere. It was his fault that he mistakenly understood the interview as ¡°exclusive¡± only by the fact that he had persuaded Dragonfly for an interview for a long time. However, it was a common practice that one should inform in advance in case the interview be a ¡°group interview¡±. They had tricked Jay. Dragonfly requested a particular condition. There was an embargo and what¡¯s more, they wanted only the video provided by Dragonfly to be used. Jay¡¯s grand attempt to do an in-depth interview with Rei, was brought to naught. The rain got heavier. Jay closed his eyes and put his left hand on his forehead. Various thoughts crossed his mind. He felt like a wild beast caught in a trap. Other journalists were laughing and gossiping, ¡°I told you, I bet on Rei.¡± ¡°It was such an obvious audition from the beginning.¡± ¡°Now that the audition is over, what should I be watching...¡± ¡°You are a fast ball mania, are you not?¡± ¡°No...I am no longer interested in robot race.¡± If not for Jay¡¯s situation, it was an interesting and fun interview. Rei was a famous star, so called an ¡®idol¡¯ of the most popular reality show. As the door opened, Rei received everyone¡¯s attention. She came in wearing a blue one-piece spacecraft uniform. She short smooth hair barely reached her shoulders. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. "My name is Ayanami Rei." Jay, who was in despair until a moment ago, but he sat up straight once again. His eyes twinkled. Jay noticed that Rei¡¯s voice was somewhat awkward. The way she walked, her gestures, there was something peculiar about everything. Jay who had watched all previous video records of Rei sensed the difference; very subtle but definitely existing difference. One of the journalist asked, ¡°How does it feel to be selected as the final pilot?¡± Rei answered, ¡°I sincerely thank the audience who have watched the show and supported me. I also wish to send my gratitude to the members of my team. Thank you so much.¡± To Jay, Rei seemed like a same, yet a different person. ¡°What is the event you remember the most?¡± Another reporter continued to ask questions. Rei said, ¡°The moment I first flew into space. The sight of the Earth was such an exquisite beauty, it was breathtaking.¡± While the other journalists went on asking plain questions, Jay was thinking, he needed a striking question able to reveal the truth. Jay said in a loud voice, ¡°In the final round, you became famous by the ''Great Leap''.¡° Rei asked back, ¡°The grand leap?¡± Jay continued, ¡°When there was the accident, you rescued Stanley Hugh.¡± Rei¡¯s face stiffened. She groped and replied, ¡°Oh, Stanley Hugh, yes.¡± Jay called for action to reenact the situation at the time. ¡°Could you please do the salute pose for us once again?¡± Rei was visibly confused and said, ¡°Salute?¡± Rei¡¯s face expression seemed as if she never did any sort of a salute. If she had experienced it, it was near to impossible not to remember, but she did not know anything about it. It seemed like she was role-playing for somebody else. Jay decided to keep going. He stood up an approached Rei. ¡°Would you please come and take a look?¡± Dragonfly staff sent a signal to someone right away. Jay grabbed Rei¡¯s hand. He opened up her left hand and put a coin with a hole in it, into her hand. Other journalists did not know what was going on. Surprisingly, Rei¡¯ hand reacted. She held it tight. Then she shook her hand, arm and her whole body. Rei collapsed her chest onto the table in front of her, like a log. From the outside of the meeting room ran in two Robotas having sensed the change of situation. ¡°Quick!¡± The robotas, as if they were preparing for such a happening, were incredibly swift. The other journalists, who had no idea what was going on, surrounded Jay. They were in rage. ¡°What have you done?¡± ¡°What the heck is going on here?¡± ¡°We paid so much for this interview, and just look what you did!¡± The other journalists were furious at Jay. But Jay did not speak, and only looked numbingly at the direction Rei was carried off. Only Tina and Jay were the two people in the whole world, who knew the meaning of the coin. In about 5 minutes, Dragonfly staff came into the room. It was not Nicole Jacqueline who first arranged the interview. It was a lady in her early 30¡¯s. She was of no acquaintance. ¡°Jacqueline is on leave today,¡± she said in a low key voice. There was no sign of dismay. She was cold and calm. ¡°First, Ms. Ayanami Rei regained her consciousness right away, and the doctor says she is well and safe. Ms. Rei asked me to let you all know how sorry she is. She has experienced severe competition lately, and her body and mind must have been extremely exhausted. We feel that it is not possible to continue the interview.¡± The journalists did not care much to complain. They believed that Jay caused this to happen. They were also not curious about the reason she fell. ¡°I suppose you will not write about the happening? It would be too cruel if you do, and it is a project accompanying various sponsors, advertisement from big conglomerates...if things gets too open to the public, we may get into trouble,¡± said the Dragonfly staff. Jay did not hesitate to speak out. ¡°Are you threatening us?¡± The journalists¡¯ eyes all focused on the Dragonfly staff¡¯s mouth. She said, ¡°No, we would never do that...it¡¯s just a guidance.¡± She smiled openly and continued, ¡°The interview up until the interruption, you may release it keeping the embargo. We will be sending you the interview video without any editing. Also, we would like to express our regrets in causing you such inconvenience, so we will arrange to fully refund to you the amount you paid us for a booth rental fee. Thank you once again for coming all the way, and we look forward to reading your press release regarding the Mars Two departure.¡± She was calm and presented a neat finishing speech. When she mentioned about the refund, the journalists seemed content. She turned her head and looked at Jay. ¡°Mr. Jay Robinson. You have handed to Rei this coin?¡± The young lady¡¯s eyes glittered like a blade of knife. ... The four pilots bade farewell to their stay at Mars Camp One, and moved to Florida, Mars Camp Zero. In three days, they were to be isolated in the aseptic facilities. Dragonfly had provided the final leave for the pilots. Alex and Michelle Chang both arrive earlier than the official arrival time. They were having pleasant conversation at a communal space. They didn¡¯t have anyone special to meet during their leave anyways. Rei came back too. She shook her body as if she was about to fall to the ground. Michelle Chang ran out to give Rei a hand. ¡°What happened Rei?¡± Rei said, ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡± Rei pushed away Michelle a little and walked by herself. She shakingly went into her room. Alex opened up his eyes wide and looked at the direction of Rei. ¡°Is she drunk or something?¡± Chang said. ¡°No no, she¡¯s not drunk at all,¡± Alex replied. ¡°Then why is she like that?¡± Chang asked back. ¡°Hope she¡¯s OK, whatever the reason. She wouldn¡¯t tell as she never does,¡± Alex sighed and said. Rei jumped onto her bed. It wasn¡¯t that she did not feel well. The problem was her head. She didn¡¯t even drink any alcohol, but she could not remember what had happened to her that day. However, she remembered ever so clearly certain incidents. She did not remember the time and place, but Rei was tied up inside her body. She could not move an inch. She couldn¡¯t even raise her eyebrows. But she could hear things through her ears. One person was explaining the situation and the other gave an order. ¡°Even though she was under anesthesia, we couldn¡¯t open her hand. The coin, is it? Jay gave it to her. It was just a little aluminium thing. We think that little thing provoked a sparking storm inside her head. Human brain is multi-layered. The spark was made below the boundaries within our control. The memory which existed way underneath was whisked.¡± ¡°Get rid of him.¡± ... Jay¡¯s self driving car left Wilson Massachusetts and headed towards New York. The car drove through the highway, but soon out of the direction of the destination, the car made an exit to Waters Church. Next, it entered the Robert F.Torner Blvd which is a road going across the I-95 highway. At that moment, the car made an explosive roar. It crossed the centerline and in a blink of a second it ran through the fence and dived into the highway underneath. From the impact of the clash, the lithium battery within the car exploded. Blazing fire upsurged. 11 Toward Mars Chapter 11 Toward Mars Mankind''s first Mars settlement ship, the Victoria was preparing for its final departure in the Earth¡¯s orbit. The modules which were attached to Base Selene slowly and one by one came together. The place where hot and cold coexist; beautiful yet hostile to ever so fragile humankind. This is the reason why during the long journey to Mars, the ships should be inspected in every step of the way. ¡°This is the last docking! Alex! Concentrate,¡± said Captain Rei. It was different from the time of Mars One Project. Everything went on smooth. During the docking process of the modules, it was highly probable to face an autonomous guidance system error, but it didn¡¯t happen. Victoria¡¯s hardware and software quality was near to perfection, for the manufacturing company was a renowned robot manufacturing high-tech company. ¡°4,3,2,1. Great! We did it!¡± cried Alex joyfully. ¡°Off we go!¡± Chang shouted together. ¡°Not yet. We should finish the ending inspection,¡± said Hugh calmly. The pilots were exhausted during the long audition period, thus, they were excited like kids leaving for a school trip. They felt relieved since they became free from doing all the run-through rehearsals. ¡°Victoria. This is Base Selene. Now the modules are all set,¡± said the Operater of Base Selene. ¡°Thank you for keeping them well!¡± Captain Rei answered. ¡°Roger. Wish you can all survive,¡± the operater''s voice sounded like a final goodbye. ¡°Who is this? It¡¯s a kinda eere for a farewell,¡± Michelle Chang whispered to Alex. Victoria was still spinning around the orbit. The blue planet Earth, where humankind emerged, was shining under Victoria. Voyager 1, 2 and other probes created by human, have found their way out of the heliosphere a long time ago. But humans were still confined in the boundary of Earth and its satellite, moon. Breaking away from the boundary were always followed by its consequences. There were 5 departing Magellan Fleet many centuries ago, in August 1519. However, only one of them managed to return. The name of the ship was Victoria, the smallest boat of the fleet ; Magellan did not succeed. Through a naming exhibition, Dragonfly named the first Martian spacecraft as Victoria. Victoria was as simple in its structure as Apollo, the space probe for the moon. With the command module on the head, the modules Destiny, Hypnos, and Leonardo were linearly connected. There was once a project called ¡®Starship¡¯, launched to develop a newly-designed spacecraft for inter-planet travel, but Starship failed after the CEO¡¯s sudden disappearance. ¡°System inspection begins,¡± said captain Rei. ¡°The command module and Destiny all clear,¡± said Hugh, ¡°Hypnos and life supporting device all clear,¡± said Alex, ¡°Leonardo all clear,¡± said Chang. The four pilots manually checked the system of which each of them were in charge. Moreover, Victoria¡¯s Artificial Intelligence Control System also checked the overall spacecraft¡¯s condition. All the modules were in great condition. Among them, the command module ¨C Desitny, Hypnos-Leonardo were somewhat like couples. The two modules teamed as one and had a separate life supporting device of its own. ¡°Control center....all system clear. Everything is under control! Preparation over!¡±, Rei communicated to Earth in a delighted tone. the Capsule Communicator(CAPCOM) said, ¡°Great, Victoria! Congratulations.¡± The pilots applauded and bumped their fists. ¡°Victoria, approximately 17 minutes later, start activating the main engine. When we mark, you start,¡± the control center announced the following schedule. Journey to Mars is different from shooting a gun for a target. This is because the Mars revolves around the Sun at the speed of 24km per second. ¡°We are getting on the Hohmann Transfer Orbit,¡± Hugh murmured. Rei replied, ¡°How many times have we tried this from the simulator? More than a million times...wow.¡± Michelle gazed at Rei, ¡°Still, I feel grateful. As a human, this is the very first time. The very first.¡± The four people became solemn. This is the course which numerous Mars probes have traveled, but it¡¯s the first time the ship actually had mankind on board. The heads of the pilots were all facing the Earth. It was a pose to protect the pilots from the intense cosmic rays. When the spacecraft enters the orbit, the shielding device will come down like a curtain rolling down. The body of the spacecraft will then rotate around like a barbecue on a fire pit.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Look. The aurora!¡± Chang exclaimed. Above the whirling cloud, the aurora meandered in the dark sky as if boasting its fluorescent colors. It is a phenomenon which shows that the magnetic field surrounding the Earth is running against the plasma particles from the sun. The red planet, Mars has no such magnetic shields. ¡°We won¡¯t be able to see this again,¡± Alex said. Chang echoed Alex''s words,¡°That¡¯s right. Never again...¡± Rei asked them jokingly, ¡°Do you mean you want to see the aurora, the planet Earth again?¡± Alex replied, "Nope, but... It¡¯s hard to say goodbye.¡± Alex, Chang and Rei spoke to each other. Hugh was rather quiet. He didn¡¯t want to fake himself by saying things meaningless. Rei looked at Hugh. Rei thought that Hugh''s face resembled the face that she had seen at Bonghwa Hospital in Pyungyang. He looked as if he couldn''t say anything, as if he had a secret. It was Michelle who broke the silence and spoke out, ¡°Hugh, what are you thinking about?¡± ¡°Thinking? I was just thinking about the things we went through together,¡± Hugh lied. Actions to be taken. X¡¯s final words, X had said shaking his head that the project will not be a success. He had said that Hugh should stop everything. Hugh shouted at X, ¡°Why are you cursing?¡± He disappeared. A mysterious man. Hugh had never come across his real face in person. Hugh did not know who he exactly was. But his words, unlike the intention it was said, imparted a spell on all four of them. All things they went through together crossed their minds. Hugh giggled all of a sudden. He remembered the time when Rei kicked him in between his legs. Rei also remembered the same situation. Rei''s face turned red, and she stammered at Hugh, ¡°What! What are you thinking about?¡± "Nothing," replied Hugh with a smile. Back when the team was newly set, Hugh wanted to check if the D-type link hidden in the tape player was working well; and at that moment, his identity was about to be revealed by Rei. Startled Hugh, deliberately spilt a drink on Rei. Rei, as fast as thunder, attacked his vital point. Hugh instantly fell to the ground. Luckily he could avert suspicion and what¡¯s more, their love sprouted from this incident. It¡¯s amazing how love comes to you like fever, at an unexpected moment or a chance. ¡°D minus 1 minute,¡± The control center sent a wireless signal. It was time to get on the Hohmann Transfer Orbit. ¡°All system clear,¡± Alex said. ¡°Check the lock again and everyone to your position!¡± Rei said. ¡°4.3.2.1. ignition!¡± It was quite simple to go 2.95km per second faster. Everything went softer than that the impact of the simulator. Time itself didn¡¯t last long. When the engine was off finally, the pilots did not applaud. Now the one-way journey ¨C departure of no return - to Mars has finally begun. ¡°Route and speed, all clear. Well done, Victoria! Bon voyage until the re-connection!¡± the voice from the control tower sounded light, as if a big burden has been lifted. ¡°Now, off to sleep!¡± Rei shouted out loud." It was an inevitable moment. All the pilots were afraid of going into hibernation. It went through clinical trials and achieved FDA approvals. Still, the hibernation they were about to go into was so called a ¡°death-like sleep¡±. The hibernation device which stood in line with Hypnos walls looked similar to a coffin. The devices didn¡¯t even have windows, in order to shield the cosmic rays. ¡°In the old SF movies, many of thems were made of transparent glasses; did they really have to make it like this?¡± grumbled Michelle. ¡°Right, Michelle! I agree with you 100%,¡± Alex responded. Michelle went into the hibernation device first. She fit herself into the small space. Alex helped her tuck in. ¡°Shall I make a little hole so that you can take a peek outside?¡± Rei pretended to smash the top of the device. ¡°No captain, I don¡¯t want a skinny Michelle. Chubby Michelle is so adorable!¡± Robust Alex answered Rei with a cute little voice. Michelle drew a heart shape with her fingers at Alex. Michelle was injected some sleeping anesthetic through a needle-less injection. Robin Alex held her hand. Michelle closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep. Automatically, the top of the device closed by itself like a drawer closing; then, Shoot, a sound of wind coming out was heard. Next was Robin Alex¡¯s turn. The following was Rei. ¡°I...wanna be awake¡± said Rei. ¡°You do? Captain? Shall I go first?¡± Hugh deliberately said in a playful voice. Hugh pretended everything was OK but was afraid that she might request to change the order. All kinds of scenarios were rolling in his head. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t mean that. You, silly. If I be awake with you for 8 months, I might get frustrated to death before I reach Mars,¡± replied Rei while she hit Hugh on his chest softly. ¡°No, I don¡¯t worry about that. The problem is that we don¡¯t have enough food to be awake for that long. I don¡¯t wanna starve,¡± Hugh said. Rei pretended she got mad, ¡°Do you really need to describe all that?¡± Hugh reached out to Rei, held her in his arms and kissed her,¡°Let¡¯s meet in our dreams.¡± Rei went into the hibernation device. Victoria became all quiet. Everything went along as planned. Hugh swam over to Destiny. Now it was time to execute the plan. 12 Footprints on Mars Chapter 12 Footprints on Mars It has been 8 months since the first settlement ship, the Victoria had departed to Mars. The Bourbon Street pub in the old town of Key-West Florida was full of heat as the place was crowed with people drinking beer and talking to one another. However, they all seemed rather nervous and their facial expressions were like a fully blown up balloon. Somebody spoke from a grand TV screen on the wall, ¡°We are continuing. It is an important moment. For the following 7 minutes, the control tower on Earth is not able to assist in any way.¡± Everybody turned their heads towards the TV set. It was the day the Victoria was landing on Mars. TV news was explaining that the spacecraft had entered into the Mars¡¯s orbit. When the video streaming was cut, the CG screen came up. The host coughed lightly and explained, "Now, about three minutes are left before the Victoria lands on Mars. It is the time when the Victoria cannot transmit signals to Earth. There is nothing we can do but wait for the signal to come back." Even if the atmosphere is thinner than Earth, the floor of the lander, which falls six times faster than the speed of a bullet, will burn with frictional heat of more than 1,500 degrees Celsius. The commentator spoke of his experience, ¡°We have returned twice via Soyuz, once via Dragon. Each time, it was fearful when the spacecrafts entered into Earth¡¯s orbit. It sure is different from when it went out of the orbit.¡± The host said, ¡°The signal sent from Mars takes up 12 minutes time to reach Earth.¡± After a few seconds of silence, the host carefully continued, ¡°So, the mission is already successful or...¡± ¡°Mind your words! The Mars One explosion killed 30 people,¡± the ex-space pilot commentator raised his voice. He seemed to have forgotten that he was broadcasting live. He did not want to be reminded of the worst explosion of all times ¨C the Mars One Project rocket explosion. The audiences also fell into disorder. But soon the next phase came up. ¡°Ah! We can see the spacecraft approaching!¡± cried the host cheerfully. he was as excited as a sports commentator announcing a goal-in for a football tournament. ¡°Look, the retro-rocket is working perfectly,¡± the commentator explained the screen being transmitted. The camera on the surface of Mars had caught the command module of Victoria descending to Mars. 2 years ago, when the shortest window to Mars had opened, they already sent to Mars the remote control cameras. The commentator exclaimed with joy, ¡°Oh! My Lord! The ship is heading to the correct direction.¡± 6 rocket motors on the side of the spacecraft have activated. Light yellow colored fire roared out. The Meridiani Planum greeted humans for the first time, and the Mars sand whirled up from the red terrain. The video was so vivid that the distance of 225,018,036km seemed unrealistic. ¡°Finally, at last, the landing!¡± said the host. ¡°Yes! Successful journey to Mars! A brilliant triumph, a memorable moment in the history of mankind!¡± said the commentator with tears of joy. All the channels worldwide broadcasted the same video. Swiftly landing spacecraft, about 100 people at the control tower rejoiced and swung their fists in the air. Everybody hugged with joy. The scenery at the Bourbon Street pub was exactly the same. The first migrants descended from the ship one by one, wearing their Mars activity uniform. Together, they put their arms around each other¡¯s shoulders and they all raised their right foot and stomped onto the ground, making mankind¡¯s first footprint. It was indeed the highlight of the Mars landing event. Cameras closed up the footprints. Grand applauses and cheers came from every corner of the EarthSome people whistled cheerfully. Everyone was excited and happy as if they themselves stepped on the red sand. Considering the television penetration rate at the time of Apollo 11, the Mars landing was a tremendous event worldwide. The heroine was none other than Rei. ¡°We announce through this humble step...¡± Rei, standing in the center of the pilots spoke with a trembling small voice,¡°Humanity is no longer loners of the blue planet.¡± Ayanami Rei, Stanley Hugh, Michelle Chang, Robin Alex. The four pilots. They set their steps for the very first time on Mars and have truly become the first Martians. Rei¡¯s eyes twinkled inside the visor. She said, ¡°By the time the signal reaches the Earth, that is, in about 20minutes, what would I be doing?¡± The camera closed up on Rei¡¯s face inside the helmet. ¡°Probably, I would be...¡± Rei linked her arms to Hugh¡¯s and continued, ¡°Kissing Hugh who¡¯s standing right here with me. First, we should go back to the place we can take our helmets off!¡± Rei smiled a big smile, as beautiful as cherry blossoms. ¡°This was Rei, the first Martian.¡± Everybody followed Rei¡¯s word and shouted ¡°Martian! Martian!¡±. The host continued on by praising Rei, ¡°Yes, Rei...She was by far the most outstanding pilot from the audition process. Where does her charms come from? Of course, it would be difficult to meet her again on Earth. It is a grand pity, really.¡± Someone hysterically put down the empty glass. Unlike everyone who gathered together to laugh and talk, the man sat at the very corner of the bar. The bartender glanced at the hunter eye Asian man. ¡°One more.¡± It was Jay Robinson. He moved his fingers around the glass, gazing at the froth mark within it. He lay the glass down, and put his hand in his right pocket. He felt the coin with a hole. It was still there. ¡°Jay Robinson!¡±, a voice called Jay. Jay turned his head to the direction, startled and astound. It was Key West in Florida where he had no acquaintance. From the day of the car accident, he did not carry any electric device with him to avoid tracking. A greyish blue eyes looked straight at Jay. She was a woman in her early 30¡¯s wearing black suit with neatly cut brown hair touching her shoulders. ¡°Who is this...¡± Jay said. After having looked around, the woman spoke in a low voice, ¡°We were looking for you, Jay.¡± Jay made an awkward expression at such unexpected situation, and pointed his finger to his chest. The woman nodded without hesitation. Jay¡¯s eyebrows trembled a little. He thought there was no time to lose. She didn¡¯t seem to have any company. Jay lifted his left hand and gave her a sign to wait for a second, and picked up his glass. The woman followed Jay¡¯s hand gesture, and at that instant, Jay smashed the glass onto the wall in front. It clashed and broke into pieces. The bartender screamed. Everyone looked to the direction. Jay ran off pushing the people away. Someone called on him but he did not look back. As he ran out of the door, rain was falling diagonally in the darkness of the night. Jay kept on running across the street. But he had no choice but to stop. From all directions, light so strong and bright shone onto him, blinding his eyes. A lightning flash hit Jay on his backside. He passed out and fell to the ground. ... When Jay awoke, he felt his shoulders aching. White wall, bluish and cold light, metal table and chair, and at one side of the wall was a single mirror. It was a typical investigation room. What hit him was likely to be a taser gun. Jay blinked his eyes trying to get accustomed to the light. In front of him was the woman he tried to run away from. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The woman responded as Jay moved, ¡°Are you awake?¡± Jay raised his upper body. But he fell again onto the chair. He was tied to the chair. His ankles were tied with a plastic strap to the chair, and he had handcuffs on his wrist. Jay shouted angrily, ¡°What the hell is all this!¡± He pretended to be overly angry to gain time. He needed to know what the current situation was. On the other hand, he was relieved a little, because whoever brought him here, if they were after his life, then he would already be dead, instead of waking up in this strange room. ¡°We thought that useless conflict was unnecessary,¡± the woman¡¯s voice was calm. She got up slowly from where she was sitting, and approached to Jay. Jay reflectively tried to move backwards. The metal chair screeched the floor. The woman ridiculed Jay with a faint giggle and bend her waist right in front of Jay. Her white neck, defenselessly open to him. The woman released Jay¡¯s handcuffs and cut the straps tied on his ankles. Jay thought quickly, ''It wasn¡¯t a good idea. It was too reckless.'' Even if he hit her on the neck and make her faint, that would not lead him out of the room. He did not have enough information. So, what she was saying to him was merely that Jay was helpless. She got up and held out her hand, ¡°Dana Catherine, FBI agent at the Space Forces." Jay touched his handcuff free wrists, and refused to shake hands with her. Catherine smiled a little and put her hand away, ¡°Sure, Formality is no more important than the essence¡± With a table in between them, Catherine went back to her chair. She wasn¡¯t wrong. A big fuss at the pub would have meant disclosing his location to the chasers. ¡°Who gave you the right to act this way? This is abduction! Listen, I will make you be responsible for all this. You¡¯d better be ready to take off your uniform!¡± Jay shouted. he pointed his finger right at Catherine¡¯s face and said, ¡°Call my lawyer.¡± Weather she was a real FBI agent or not, nobody knows. She didn¡¯t even inform about the Miranda Rights. Even if she was really a FBI agent, Jay had no reason to tell her the truth. He could not decide if she was trustworthy or not. Catherine did not even blink her eyes. She nodded and said, ¡°Of course, I understand perfectly why you are acting this way.¡± Catherine wrinkled up her brows and put her right hand in her pocket. ¡°If you see this, I suppose you will think differently.¡± In an instant, Jay thought she was getting out a gun. But it wasn¡¯t a gun. It was an unfoldable personal information device. As the screen rolled open, there appeared on screen a pilot in a weightless state. Jay, who poured out his frustration, froze up. It was Rei. ''Is that Rei?'' Jay couldn''t believe what he see. Catherine did not miss the moment. She smiled frigidly. In the screen, Rie was reporting about her situation. ¡°Victoria¡¯s pilot, this is Rei. This is Level 1 warning, I repeat. Level 1 warning situation.¡± Her black hair was pointing upwards to various directions. It shows that she was in a weightless state. Rei¡¯s eyes looked nervous and uneasy. She wasn¡¯t at all confident or proud as her usual self. ''Level 1 warning'' was a sign that the spacecraft has a low air pressure caused by a hole, or when toxic air penetrates into the ship. It also means that pilots¡¯ lives are in danger. It was an international warning system which started from the time of ISS. Jay remembered watching live broadcast on TV, the four pilots stepping down on Mars. He could not connect the scene with what he had seen just before. Catherine seemed to read Jay¡¯s thoughts. She said, ¡°Just like the time of Apollo 13, some miracle may have come up and resolved the level 1 warning situation, and made them land on Mars. But, would that be true?¡± If it was the case, Rei would have bragged about the story when she landed on the Mars. She had endlessly boasted about her accomplishment for the Earth orbit training accident. Rei was like that. Catherine explained to Jay while showing him one more picture, ¡°The Mars orbiting ship operated by the European Space Agency, the Mars Eye shot a video of Mars 2 touchdown point ¨C Meridiani Planum. We got the video a little while ago.¡± Victoria which has landed on the land of Mars had black dirt around it. It was a trace left by operating a rocket. Destiny module also stood exactly on its destination, about 200 meters away for the command module. It was a proof photo showing the grand success of Mars landing. Catherine said to Jay who looked totally confused. ¡°You may be wondering why I am showing this to you.¡± She pointed a part of the video with her fingertip. ¡°But look over here. Next to the service module,¡± she said and expanded the satellite shot. Lines which were manually drawn came into their eyes. ¡°Someone had lined up the red hematites existing in Mars, so that it looks like a line. This is what an airplane pilot having landed on a desert island would have done. As if wishing that somebody up in the sky will notice it....similar to the Nazca Line,¡± explained Catherine calmly. The first line was set straight. Catherine continued, expressing regret, ¡°But it is sad that the Mars Eye is not a stationary satellite. It cannot but move around instead of staying at the spot. It visits the spot about twice a day...¡± Jay attempted to refute her remark, ¡°I should think there are more orbiters around Mars...¡± Catherine shook her head and made a sigh. She said, ¡°Russia and India owns orbiters although they are not stationary satellites. We asked them via diplomatic lines but they all rejected in providing help. It totally does not make sense. Especially in this area where international cooperation is easily made. There must be something.¡± ''Victoria had successfully landed on the red planet, Mars. What¡¯s the problem here? The whole world has seen the Mars landing just an hour ago,'' Jay was puzzled and could not find the answer. Catherine said, ¡°We received some data from Europe. There¡¯s also NATO we presume will have more information.¡± Jay could not understand what Catherine was talking about. He tried to catch up with, ¡°But Dragonfly....¡± Catherine said, ¡°I know what you wish to say. Dragonfly sent tons of broadcasting equipment to Mars in advance : It also operates two satellites in orbit around Mars. However...¡± Catherine stopped talking and looked up at Jay. ¡°Dragonfly refuses to cooperate. Surprisingly, it is saying that Mars is a territory where American government cannot perform its administrative ability,¡± said Catherine. The information Dragonfly gathered in Mars was it''s sole ownership. Meridiani Planum was under Dragonfly¡¯s full control. ¡°The intention of the person drawing the red line seems clear. Although we do not know for sure who the person may be,¡± Catherine said. She pointed with her finger the red line in the picture and said, "the person has some important message he wants to send to the earth outside of Dragonfly''s control. And the person desperately wants to." Dragonfly¡¯s Mars Two project had mostly adopted the Mars Direct Project designed by the pioneer of astronautics, Robert Zubrin. The project was of low cost and did not require the highest technical level, among all projects proposed on table. This also meant that more burden be allocated to the pilots. ¡°If the person wasn''t desperate, he or she wouldn''t have started doing it right after having landed on Mars. Because the person''s life was in danger,¡± said Catherine. If the pilots do not set the first residential module and covers them with mud brick, then the pilots may be in danger of losing their lives by the attack of cosmic ray and solar storm. ¡°What do you want from me? Why the hell did you kidnap me and bring me here?¡± cried Jay, all exhausted. Catherine seemed to be saying that she sympathized with Jay. She said, ¡°We do not intend to make things difficult for you. It is just that, as it might be too confusing, we wanted to tell you one by one...¡± 13 Unexpected Encounter Chapter 13 Unexpected Encounter Victoria was passing through the Earth¡¯s magnetic field. The Earth, mother of countless living creatures...Victoria was getting away from the planet¡¯s protective surface. It headed towards the space where particles from the sun made furious winds and lunged at the spacecraft, like sea waves hitting a ship¡¯s bow. Hugh went across to the Destiny module and manually closed the hatch connecting to the Hypnos module. The Hypnos-Leonardo modules where hibernation devices were at, had to be absolutely safe in all cases. So, it was necessary to close the hatch. Hugh went to the pilot private space where there were sleeping bags for resting. This was the only space in the whole spacecraft where there was no CCTV. He checked the ¡®Stanley Hugh¡¯ name sign and opened the cabinet zipper. He got out a tape player ¡°mymy¡± and the headphone. The cupola observation window had its shield plugged on. Hugh opened the hatch and moved to temporary air lock. At the right side of the passage, there was the docking gate, at the left was a hatch where one could go outside wearing a spacesuit. Next to the four directions of the air lock, there hung one spacesuit each. Hugh signed remembering Christina asking him,¡°Why don¡¯t you just jump off?¡± He remembered Christina¡¯s swollen eyes and the bandaged finger. He knew why she was so absorbed in this project and even destroying herself to accomplish it. It was because of love. Hugh mumbled,¡°If I go back to Earth...¡± But he knew that the problems will not come to an end even if he goes back to earth. Hugh sighed. Even though he sets Victoria back to Earth, discloses that Mars Two project had a problem, the story will not end there. It would be the beginning of a bigger fight. Hugh believed that Howard Mason who no longer shows himself in public is plotting a hidden conspiracy. At that moment, coincidently, nobody could connect with X. Inside Humanity, many people worried about the situation ¨C the grand confrontation has not even started, but Humanity was facing the danger of getting disorganized. It was difficult to deny X¡¯s power of command and funding skills. Hugh shook his head fast. It was a common sense to solve tasks right in front first of all. Hugh opened the air lock hatch and went over to the command module. He cut in half the 3.5 pie jack on the headphone. A D-type connector was hidden in it. Hugh put his hand under the right side instrument board to connect the terminal with the connector. It was the channel to connect to Victoria¡¯s main computing system. Hugh took in a deep breath. He pressed the button on the tape player. The first track song played was none other than . Hugh concentrated. He wasn¡¯t listening to the music. The mymy was a delicately designed hacking tool. Besides the 2 channels of stereo track, was hidden another track. A code that intercepts Victoria¡¯s operational control authority of auto pilot and communication devices were recorded. When pressed the play button, as well as music playing, the hacking code enters through the D-type connector. Next to the play button, a small light emitting diode was blinking a green light. This meant that everything was being proceeded as planned. ¡°Thump¡± ¡°Thump¡± ¡°Thump¡± All of a sudden, Victoria¡¯s command module turned pitch black. After that, the air lock and the Destiny one by one became all dark. Hugh froze. Then, he moved like mad. It was not only the light which went out. The whole system connecting Victoria-air lock-Destiny went off at the same time. He removed the D-type connector, but nothing changed. The tunnel patch which showed the influx of various information turned black. He moved up and down the mechanical ancillary switch and the manual operation lever, but no response. Even the emergency power source and warning light did not work. All the electronic devices which were beaming multi colored lights had turned black and white like motionless fossils. Hugh became pale. He breathed fast. He was pouring sweat on his forehead and they stayed there like a gel. He wiped off the sweat. In microgravity space, sweat or blood gets sticky and do not roll down.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. The structure of Victoria was an old design. However, the computing system inside was of most high-tech specifications. It was a integrated technology combining software and hardware system of Dragonfly, which was once a robot manufacturing company. The system was so well knit that even Humanity members could not dare penetrate. Hugh¡¯s hacking program was therefore tested numerous times and highly credible. Hugh put both two hands on his forehead. He tried to wipe off the sweat with his palms. This way, everything they have planned will go down the drain. Moreover, he himself and the other three pilots¡¯ life would be in danger. As the life support system had stopped, carbon dioxide density will rise. When the density rises up to 3%, they would have difficulty breathing, and from 8% density, they will lose their consciousness. If he wanted to survive, he must go into the hibernation device. The life support system of Hypnos-Leonardo was designed to operate separately from that of Victoria-Desnity system. Even if Victoria-Destiny system stops, the other system will not halt from operating. Yet, even that is last for 8 months at the longest. If Victoria does not get hit by unidentified objects such as asteroids, or encounter any other danger during the way, Victoria will eventually reach Mars. However, even if it arrives on Mars, the consequences are equally dreadful. If it does not reduce speed by operating the main engine, it gets caught by the red planet¡¯s gravity field. The speed will become faster. Like skydivers unable to open their parachutes they would dive into Mars. Even with the help of frictional heat, they will disappear completely. Christina wanted Hugh to jump off from the spacecraft, but it was too late to jump. Even if he opens the air lock and escape, it would be impossible for him to change direction, which means he would be heading towards Mars together with Victoria. Hugh clenched his teeth. There was only one possible way. Hugh pulled off the top below the right hand side of the instrument board. There was the emergency manual designed to be used at emergency times. More than half way through, he found the right page. By operating the communication module outside of the spacecraft via an emergency power supply, he could still report to Earth the distress situation. Hugh went across to the temporary air lock. He started wearing his spacesuit. He kept making mistakes binding the wrist and ankle parts. It was dark as well, but Hugh was in a hurry. Victoria was getting 32.73km away from Earth every second. At that time... The system hacking prevention emergency lock mode had been relieved. As if nothing had happened, the power supply was back on. Through the open hatch, Hugh looked up to the direction of the command module. It seemed that all instrument board had come back to its normal status. During the Victoria simulation, they had practiced few hundred times, various scenarios of emergency situation, but the ¡°emergency lock mode¡± was never on the list. ¡°Hacking prevention¡± was also a word Hugh had never heard of before. Then, it meant that somebody at Dragonfly had forecasted that hacking may occur at Victoria, and prepared for the situation. ''They forecasted the situation?'' A faint noise was heard, and it soon became bigger and bigger. Hugh was surprised as if hit by an electric shock, and turned his head to the other direction. It was the direction of Destiny. The noise stopped. Hugh¡¯s eyes widened. This time, the door lock of the hatch connecting Destiny and air lock started moving. Whoever it is turning the lock from the opposite side cannot be a human. Once one gets into the hibernation device, it is impossible to wake up before arriving on Mars. That is the principle construction of the hibernation device. If not human? Hugh became tense. Finally the hatch opened. ¡°Michelle!¡± cried Hugh, startled. It was none other than Michelle Chang who opened the Hatch and stood in front of Hugh¡¯s eyes. Hugh¡¯s eyes were wide open but he himself could not believe in the scene laying in front of him. Hugh called upon Michelle but Michelle did not respond. Her face was telling him that she had never before felt any kind of emotion, never before in her life. She was walking fast towards Hugh. 14 Dangerous Hide-And-Seek Chapter 14 Dangerous Hide-And-Seek Victoria¡¯s Hypnos module. A hibernation device opened up with a ¡°click¡±. As if opening a vacuum packing, a sound of wind blowing out was heard. Rei awoke. She breathed heavily as if she was rescued to a shore right before drowning. She coughed and a phlegmatic temperament came out with the cough. Although Rei opened her eyes, they were out of focus. Mars landing spacecraft, the Victoria was nearing to its destination. An enormous space of silence had invaded the distance of 60 million kilometers. The God of War, Mars was near. Like a battlefield scattered with blood, the terrain was glowing in red. Due to gravity, Mars was drawing Victoria to its bosom, as if pulling a rope tied onto it. ¡°Year 2034, February 3rd, Universal Standard Time, 21:30. Good to see you, Rei!¡± It was Exi the assistant robot which was shaped like a half cut football. Rei inhaled deeply and exhaled again and again. Before departure, Rei had said at the interview that going into hibernation does not scare her at all. That was a downright lie. She was so worried that her life may end with the hibernation. She now felt relieved that she succeeded in waking up from the long sleep. Hypnos module¡¯s artificial gravity will go away in 5 minutes The main computer sent the message. Rei opened to EMS exercise machine which prevents muscle loss. She then stripped off the ECG sensors one by one. ¡°How were things?¡± said Rei. Exi smiled onto the wall screen. ¡°Things were fine. There was nobody making a hole on the buttocks," answered Exi. it was referring to the accident during the final selection test. ¡°Haha, it¡¯s a joke. It was a dull journey after all. If I had hands, then I would have knitted a red muffler to wear at Mars. It¡¯s really cold down there,¡± said Exi. ¡°Hey, you are not even gonna step out of the spacecraft,¡± said Rei. Rei got up. As written in the manual, she moved her hands, arms and legs slowly. Her body did not feel like hers. It was a funny feeling. Even if a light artificial gravity occurred when Hypnos module did turns, her muscles would have decreased. However, things will get better. In fact, she will become stronger, because the gravity on Mars is only one-third compared to the Earth. ¡°Exi, please turn on the light,¡± ordered Rei. ¡°You¡¯re not alone. I can look at you,¡± said Exi. Rei looked down on her nearly naked body, and frowned, ¡°Why do I need to care about you?¡± Rei did a somersault to wake herself up. Rei looked inside the Hypnos where the hibernation devices were arranged along the inner surface of the cylinder. It¡¯s difficult to deny that the hibernation device looks similar to a coffin. She went closer to the device no.2 where Stanley Hugh was sleeping in. On the display of the device was his name as well as the green light which signified that everything was normal. The other pilots will wake up in a week¡¯s time. Now is the moment when the main engine should operate to reduce speed. Rei gently stroked with her hands, the angular part of the hibernation device, where Hugh was lying in. Beneath it, were his face and his body. She missed him. ¡°Rei, how about a riddle? Marduk, Mummu, Abju, Ea, Tiamat,¡± said Exi. ¡°I don¡¯t like riddles,¡± replied Rei with a sullen look. Right after waking up from a death-like deep sleep, Rei did not want to be disturbed. Exi repeated the same sentence again,¡°Listen carefully. Marduk, Mummu, Abju, Ea, Tiamat.¡± Incomprehensible words in repeat. Exi spoke even faster. Rei felt extremely nervous and edgy. Rei caught Exi with her hands, pulled it towards her face. An electric motor gave out a vibrating sound. It was like a small pet trying to let go of the grip. Rei made a scary face and said, ¡°Why do you keep on disturbing me?¡± It was good that Exi did not have arms or legs. If such a naughty machine malfunctioned or caused trouble all the time... it was disastrous. Rei remembered that according to the manual, Exi could only access the system to turn on and off the light. She tilted her head. She then thought. ''This is weird...'' Rei asked while opening the hatch between Hypnos and Destiny,"Why are you next to me?¡± Exi did not reply, and as if it did not hear anything. Instead, it went fast ahead. Destiny module mainly consisted of freight bed and private sleeping space for pilots. There were various equipments needed for Mars exploration, wrapped with impact absorber. Rei pulled down the zipper for private sleeping area. It was the regulation that pilots should wear pressure suits inside the spacecraft, but Rei was only wearing a one layered dressing gown. She wanted to stay this way until the other pilots woke up, since pressure suit was uncomfortable to wear. Rei turned her head to the direction of the command module. She suddenly noticed that the hatch between Destiny and temporary air lock, which should be tightly closed, was wide open. ¡°Exi!¡± shouted Rei. Rei looked around. Exi was nowhere to be seen. She remembered that during the back-briefing simulation or the manual, the encounter with Exi did not exist. The long distance journey to Mars was delicately planned. For verification, everything was simulated tens and hundreds of times. During Rei¡¯s previous practices, she was to get out of her hibernation device, open the closed hatches one by one, and after she had arrived at the command module, she was to meet Exi there. Exi¡¯s role was to do a briefing on the information it had received from the control center, quite the opposite from the jokes and riddles. The hatch between the temporary air lock and the command module was also open. ¡°Exi!¡± Rei¡¯s voice became hoarse. Her nerves were on edge. She looked down. The command module, Victoria was a small confined space : It originaly designed general-purpose return vessel to Earth. Dragonfly adapted the command module for deep space travel and installed an additional second parachute to unfold in Mars'' sparse atmosphere. ¡°Wow...¡± Rei froze. She was astonished at the scenery outside the trapezoidal observation window of the command module. The red planet was shining right before her eyes. She got goose bumps. It was like facing a living ghost. The scene was identical to that she had seen during countless simulations. But, it was different. She could feel an intense power no words could explain.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Rei put her face close to the observation window and came face to face with Mars. She even forgot the fact that she was looking for Exi. She could detect the deep scar across its surface, the Marineris Valley. Mars was that close. Humans were reaching out to Mars since 1960. 4 yours later, they succeeded in proximity pass and in 1971, they orbited Mars for the first time. After 4 years from then, in 1975, Viking 1, so called the ¡°Big Stupid¡± arrived successfully at Chryse Planitia. However, the public¡¯s interest about the moon project had faded away, and same applied to that of the Red Planet. As if the first 10 years of dynamic space race had been forgotten, after the Viking 1¡¯s landing on Mars, for some 59 years of time, no human had set his foot on Mars. There was no time to be immersed in emotion. Rei had a bad feeling, and thought that she had to be alert. First, she must find Exi. She wanted to find out why the little machine acts unlike the manual. She also wanted to know what messages were sent from the Earth¡¯s control center. Maybe, these two might have a connection. ¡°There you are, Exi!¡± said Rei. Exi was hiding below the instrument panel of the command module. Exi was connecting the instrument terminal to the D-type link which was for data delivery and recharging. ¡°What are you doing?¡± asked Rei. But Exi did not move. Rei shook Exi a little but it did not respond. ¡°Is it discharged?¡± she wondered. Rei wanted to give it a kick like a football, but decided not to. There was no time. To check the messages manually, Rei operated the communication terminal. Access denied ID. ¡°What?¡± said Rei. Rei repeatedly pressed the 8 number codes, but the result remained the same. Alert! Access denied ID. Communication terminal was a personalized equipment. Each pilot can receive personal messages such as private messages from their family members. Nevertheless, it was impossible that Rei cannot get accessed with her ID. Rei was the captain of Victoria. In case a secret message be sent to Victoria, only Rei out of the 4 pilots is allowed access. Rei closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. She remembered various alternative scenarios she experienced during simulation. However, this kind of scenario had not existed. ¡°The hell with the message. Be positive, Rei!¡± Rei spoke to herself and thumped her chest. The air pressure is lower than normal. ¡°What the heck is this!¡± cried Rei. Somehow, strange things happened one after another. If the air pressure is going down, then she should wear the pressure suit first. Rei turned her head to the right side panel of the two instrument panels spreading from the central observation window. She had no intention of dying right in front of the destination. Luckily, the pressure rate was not falling abruptly. There is a leaking area among the four lump of modules, and this was likely to have happened during the hibernation. ¡°Exi!¡± shouted Rei. Exi which was leaning on the main computer link just before, has disappeared once again. ¡°Exi! Exi!¡± That tiny semi-circle robot was a headache. She wondered if the robot was by any chance hiding something. However, an independent stand-alone AI, which is not even connected to the network, cannot deceive a human; it was impossible. There was no time to hang back. If there is a leaking area, then it should be fixed; and if it cannot be fixed, then, the module should be closed down. This was essential since it might cause a fatal result as Victoria enters Mars¡¯s orbit. The reason why the spacecraft, Columbia exploded on its way back to Earth was because one piece of fiberglass plate titled on the lower side of the shuttle had been broken. ¡°This is Victoria. Rei Choi reporting. Class 1 alert situation. I repeat. Class 1 alert. Message access is being denied. The ship¡¯s air pressure is low. Have to decide if this is system malfunction or not. Will check every measuring equipment on each module manually. Over,¡± she sent the message but could not get any reply back right away. From Mars to Earth, it takes 20 minutes to travel at speed of light. No existing device can be faster than light. Rei closed Victoria¡¯s hatch and locked it. She skillfully changed the instrument panel manually and inspected the change of air pressure. "30, 29, 28..." She looked at the panel and counted 30 seconds. ¡°Checked. All clear!¡± It seemed that there was no problem at the command module which was to land the pilots on Mars. If the landing ship cannot be trusted for withstanding high temperature and high pressure, landing itself was suicidal. Not landing was also near to suicidal, because it will rotate around the Mars continuously until life ends. This is one the reasons why professionals who were well aware of the specifics called the Mars Two Project the ¡°Suicide Mission¡±. Even if a rescue team comes from Earth, the preparation will take at least a couple of months. ¡°30, 29, 28...¡± It was now time to check the air lock connected to the command module. ¡°Checked, all clear!¡± Rei held the hand rail. She moved to open the door of the hatch connected to Destiny. She glanced at the exterior space suit holder. There were only 3 space suits on it. 1 was missing. At the time of departure, there were 4 space suits. There must be 4 of them. ¡°What the...what is going on? Exi, Exi!!¡± Since it is not easy to wear exterior space suits alone, the regulation is that 2 people team up. Rei was in panic. ¡°Exi! Exi!¡° Now, everything did not look normal. Yet, checking the air pressure was also urgent. ¡°30, 29, 28.." This time, it¡¯s Destiny. ¡°Checked, all clear!¡± Rei looke around to find Exi. She got her flashlight out and looked into every corners of Destiny. Dust was shining upon the flashlight. In the dust, Rei found something. It was a incomparably bigger particle than a dust; large and dark a dot, Rei reached out her hand and held it with her first and second fingers. She got a hunch. She sweated. She stopped for a second, but soon brought it near her nose. It was faint but smelled, yes, like a drop of blood. It had hardened in state of microgravity. It was a shape of an aspirin pill. It meant that one of the pilot had bled. Rei became alert, ¡°No, no! It can¡¯t be!¡± Automatic course correction, auxiliary engine on for 2 minutes. Rei held the hand rail. In order to enter into the Mars¡¯s orbit, the main computer of Victoria was changing the route slightly. The main computer was heading its way, as if it did not care about Rei¡¯s feelings. Rei quickly went back to the shelf of decompression clothing. If something terrible had happened to the other pilots, then Rei¡¯s safety cannot be assured. She wore the exterior space suit. She was sweating all over. Rei breathed deeply and went over to Destiny. She held the hatch connected to Hypnos, as she wanted to check the hibernation device once again. ¡°Thump¡± Shock detected on spacecraft A bumping sound onto something. The sound wasn¡¯t sharp, it was a dull and heavy sound. Rei let go of the hand rail, walked, got down and opened the shield of the cupola observation window at the Destiny floor. She could have gone back to the command module and looked at the screen, but there was not enough time. Outside, there was a white object. It went afar and came close again. As the object neared, she could recognize its shape. ¡°Ugh...!!¡± cried Rei. It was a human wearing a space suit. On the left shoulder was a name tag. It read ''Stanly Hugh''. Rei turned her face. She didn¡¯t have the courage to look at Hugh¡¯s mummy-like dried up face. 15 Free Sprit Chapter 15 Free Sprit Rei could not look outside. She hit the wall with her fist like mad, ¡°Why? Why! Why! Why!!!¡± It was the man she kissed before going into hibernation, Stanley Hugh. It was impossible to even imagine what had happened. Track correction was over and auto-pilot system was already being proceeded. After Rei, captain of the Victoriea went into the hibernation device, Hugh¡¯s only mission was to check the system of Hypnos module. Rei could not imagine why Hugh put on his spacesuit and went out. Hught must have been outside the ship for the past 8 months. He must have been tied to the ship by a safety rope. When Victoria tilted the direction just before, he must have bumped to the ship. ¡°Thump¡± Like a pendulum tied to the ceiling, Hugh went afar and bumped again. Rei put her two hands and shut ears, to aviod listening to the horrible sound. Why did he go outside? Did the ship need to be repaired? Rei tried to breathe. She pressed her chest to calm herself down. ¡°Thump¡± If Hugh was unable to enter back into the ship, he would have fainted due to carbon dioxide poisoning. And soon, his heart would have ceased beating. There must have been a reason. The reason he had to go out, the reason he could not come back in. If there was a reason Hugh had to go out, Rei believed that survivors had duty to fulfill. Rei was determined. Most importantly, she had to save Michelle and Alex who were still in hibernation. There was no more time to be lost in grief. Perhaps it all had something to do with the low pressure in the ship. Rei promised Hugh, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I will be back.¡± Rei opened up the zipper of personal belongings bag and started taking out all her stuff in hurry. Socks, sleeping cap, pens were thrown into the open space. They danced round and round. Rei found the item she was looking for. It was a SLG p365 pistol. ¡°We can encounter octopus-like Martians,¡± Rei had said and insisted on bringing the pistol with her. One of the suspects was Exi. If what had happened was related to Exi, the tiny robot might resist with all his might, so she needed to get prepared for the worst. Rei pushed the rail with her feet and sprung to the hatch connecting Destiny and Hypnos. The only pressure test she needed to complete was the Hypnos. If Hypnos was leaking, the problem is even bigger. Since the hibernation devices were placed at Hypnos, the Don-Hassler tank¡¯s system was much more complicated and difficult to fix. As soon as the hatch opened, Rei screamed at the sight she faceed. ¡°Stop function! Stop function!¡± cried Rei. Exi, as if it had been waiting for Rei, was hovering right in front of her. Again, Rei shouted, ¡°Stop function!¡± ''Stop function'' was a voice command switch to turn Exi off, in case it acts abnormal. Exi was laughing. 2 carets were seen on the front display, at the keyboard¡¯s 6 keyed line. Two front displays were on. Rei got furious and shouted at Exi, ¡°Exi, stop function! Don¡¯t you hear me? Stop function!¡± Did the command work? The display blacked out. But once again, in a few seconds time, the light turned on again. What appeared on the display was a face. It was none other than the creator of Boston Mechanics. The face of Howard Mason who first planned Dragonfly. The face, like a poster stuck on a wall, appeared on Exi¡¯s full screen. All of a sudden, a voice of commanding tone was heard from Exi, ¡°Ayanami Rei!¡± Rei was stunned and moved a step back. It sounded agin, ¡°Or, shall I call you Tina?¡± As a human face was projected on a semi circle shaped Exi, it looked queer as if a Halloween pumpkin was floating around in the air. Rei did not know how to respond. Although a face appeared on Exi, it couldn''t be Howard Mason himself. ¡°Anyways...it¡¯s the worst. The worst of all possibilities,¡± said the face. It frowned as if it did not care what Rei was thinking about. ¡°Listen carefully... Marduk, Mummu, Abju, Ea, Tiamat,¡± said the face. Rei laughed. It was outrageous. A funny question Exi repeatedly said over and over, ever since she first met Exi. Howerd¡¯s face asked the same question to her. It was like a novice wizard who made a series of mistakes, with the same words.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Well...it¡¯s not working,¡± the face sighed. ¡°I am not good at persuading humans, this is such a big headache,¡± said the face. Rei became confused. Victoria had approached extremely near to Mars. Distance from Earth was 225,018,036km, which equals to 12 minutes by light speed. Therefore, it was impossible to control Exi from either the Earth or the Moon. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t understand, no, you wouldn¡¯t,¡± the voice, Howard Mason was reading Rei¡¯s mind. ¡°By calculation, the percentage that you would not be persuaded is 99.99995% ; but I will try anyways. I cannot discard a research subject which I brought this far, without even attempting to persuade.¡± Rei asked, ¡°A research subject?¡± The voice answered, ¡°Yes, you wouldn¡¯t know. We never told you. In your head, there are some 35,000 neural links inserted. Through the links, we erased Tina¡¯s memory and input Rei¡¯s memory. Also, when necessary, we arranged your artificial consciousness to rule your body. Oh, I need to explain this to you for your understanding. We never announced the fact that we developed an artificial consciousness receptor. Anyhow, but at the moment...your condition is that upon hearing the signal, the names of the great Gods, you are not becoming activated.¡± explained the voice. ¡°Tina? Are you saying that the pilot who died of explosion of Mars One, is me?¡± Rei asked. ¡°Marduk killed the mother of all Gods, Tiamat with his sword. Red blood flooded all over, and her body was divided into two and with the body she made a new world. She got the credit for this and became the ruler of all Gods. To be the material for building a new world, isn¡¯t that something? A true honor?¡° said the voice, Howard Mason. While listening the story, Rei remembered the fact that a certain day¡¯s memory had totally evaporated. ¡°Probably, the neural link bundle was disconnected. We tried so hard to shield them, but 8 months was a long time. It was due to the cosmic ray particles,¡± said Howard Mason. Rei also remembered looking in the mirror one early morning, and seeing Rei who wasn¡¯t herself. ¡°We wanted the body equipped with the best ''working memory'' and the best helth condition. We replaced Tina right before the Mars One launch. We decided that the artificial consciousness was yet unskilled at controlling her body, and we needed to find out what changes are made while travelling to Mars." said the voice. Rei remembered her repeated dreams. A pill that made her lose consciousness, moving through the corridor, brain surgery...if what the face was talking about was true, then, what she remembered was not a dream. It was the procedure of erasing Tina¡¯s memory. She thought, ''Then, what about the springtime picnic with mom and dad when flower petals blew so beautifully in the air? The trembling first kiss in the attic? Terrible car accident, dad¡¯s funeral, mom in brain-death who lived one more year after the accident?'' Around Rei¡¯s face, her tears scattered like pearls. Rei¡¯s clenched fist trembled. ¡°And you, who the hell are you?¡± asked Rei. She held onto the rail hard with her left hand. ¡°Ah, sorry for my belated introduction. I am Howard Mason. I am free a being, free from the human body. If I express myself as ''uploaded'', would it be easier to understand?¡± Rei leaned her body to her left hand holding the rail, sprang up and kicked Exi hard in the air. ¡°Knock it off!¡± cried Rei. Exi flew away with recoil. Rei¡¯s kick was strong. Exi hit hard on the wall between Hypnos and Leonardo, POW. Part of an electric motor which controls Exi¡¯s posture had been broken. It rotated on the same spot just like a fly which had one wing ripped off. ¡°Humans are reckless and destructive,¡± Howard Mason¡¯s voice spoke once again. This time, the voice did not come from Exi¡¯s side, but from the ship¡¯s speaker. ¡°I told you I was a free spirit. Did you actually think that breaking Exi would affect me? I am the Victoria itself,¡± said Howard Mason. Rei did not know what to do. Breaking all speakers inside the ship as to stop his voice, was not a solution. He said, ¡°So, back to the beginning. I am now pleading you once again to be an obedient research subject. That is the only way that you can survive, although it seems that you have already made your choice to die.¡± ¡°Why did you kill Hugh?¡± asked Rei. Howard Mason replied, ¡°The other three were useless. It¡¯s a waste to spend time on the useless.¡± Exi came up to Rei again. She kicked Exi again. Exi flew like a football and hit the wall. ¡°Whatever you are, I won¡¯t let you do it your way,¡± Rei declared. ¡°It¡¯s a pity....But I can¡¯t leave it this way. I have no idea what you will be doing in my ship.¡± said Howard Mason. There was a squeaking sound from the Leonardo module. There was a hidden space behind the wall. Something was wriggling inside the dark space. Rei intuitively realized something dangerous was happening. All of a sudden an orange Martian-suited leg came out from the space, followed by a body and its arms. Rei saw the face. It was Hugh. ¡°What...Hugh?¡± said Rei. Rei blinked her eyes fast. Hugh''s movement was somewhat awkward. It was as if he was experiencing microgravity for the first time. It was not Hugh. What¡¯s more, he was not alone. Rei let out a scream, ¡°Aargh!¡± Behind Hugh was Michelle Chang. More than half of Chang¡¯s facial skin was peeled off. There were no bones and fats under her skin. Instead, there were aluminium skeleton with plastics, tubes, and electric wires. She was a Robota. 16 Last Farewell Chapter 16 Last Farewell The Robotas came up to Rei, clutching onto the rail. They were approaching towards her aiming for an attack. Rei felt threatened and stepped backwards. Howard Mason said, ¡°Dont¡¯t worry about the descending scene on Mars. Video clips of The grand moment of human history are already forged. Nobody can tell the difference.¡± Howard Mason, transplanted on Victoria, kept on babbling as if a pattern of loud-mouthed showoff character had been transferred. The fact that the ship itself - Victoria, Destiny, Hypnos, and Leonardo ¨C became the body of the artificial consciousness was terrifying. ¡°When Ayanami Rei took her first step on Mars, she says, ¡®By this small step, I announce that humankind is no longer loners of the Blue Planet.¡¯ Isn¡¯t this cool? I wrote this script myself. Rei shall become a hero. We will continue to earn money from Earth. , the fake Mars reality show will continue. Think about it. Who would come to see Rei in person?. Just one subject of experiment is enough to land on Mars. I have no intention of breeding,¡± said Howard Mason. The only one left was Rei. But there was no time to mourn on the others¡¯ death. The Robotas were coming up and Rei had to take action. It was too dangerous to use a gun. A hole in the ship would end up everything. Rei couldn¡¯t make up her decision. She needed a plan. Rei leaned forward and closed the hatch swiftly. ¡°It¡¯s meaningless to resist. The brand new Robotas are strong,¡± Howard Mason giggled. There was no need to argue. Rei did not respond. She pulled out the tool box. It was intended to be used on Mars. Rei flew fast over to Destiny. The hatch between Destiny and Hypnos was open by the Robotas already. Now they were faster than before, as if they adapted to the microgravity environment. They speedily moved alongside the rail. Rei closed the hatch between airlock and Destiny. She tightened the handle with a monkey wrench so that it would not turn. This way, she could earn some time. ¡°You¡¯re quite smart. But how much longer will it last?¡± said Howard Mason. Rei pushed the decompression switch of the airlock. It did not work, just as expected. Howard Mason dominated over them. Rei took out the electric driver from the tool box. ¡°What are you up to?¡± asked Howard Mason interestingly. Rei started taking out the screws. She was disassembling the switch box itself. ¡°Are you attempting to go out of the ship, like Hugh did? Send a message to Earth? The power supply for the communication module is cut. Can¡¯t even send a dot-and-dash signal.¡± said Howard Mason. From the backside, Robotas were vigorously shaking the round handles left and right to open up the hatch. It made bumping sounds. It seemed as if they will break soon. The monkey wrenchs were clattering and getting loose. Rei saw them, but she went on with what she was doing. She got out the wires. However sophisticated the technical system, the driving motors had to be connected with wires. She took off the covering and made short circuits. ¡°What on earth are you upto?¡± said Howard Mason. Rei hit the camera on the ceiling of the airlock with her fist. Until the Robotas enter inside by opening up the hatch, Now, Howard Mason would have no idea what is going on inside the airlock. ¡°Tina does not know Rei, but Rei knows Tina,¡± said Rei. Since Rei participated the Mars Two Project, she read every article Jay wrote. Tina, she was a clay pigeon shooter, a fusion funk group guitarist and an astronaut who received perfect scores in all tests.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Rei brought a space suit from the holder. She connected the helmet, gloves and shoes. She also lowered the visor of the helmet. With the air inflated, the space suit looked like a man. Rei positioned the suit to sit on the spot Robotas would see when opening the hatch to enter. Rei sat on the blind spot. She wrapped herself with safety rope and sat tight facing her back to the Destiny wall. She held two wires with her hands, ready to make short circuits. ¡°Crack¡± Finally, the monkey wrench tightened part smashed open, unable to bear the impact any longer. With a squeaking sound, the hatch opened. As the Robotas came over, they jumped onto the space suit like a vulture diving to the ground to snatch its prey. They did not see Rei. ¡°Now!¡± Rei connected the wires. The motor activated and latches unhooked. As if a cork of a champagne bottle flung open, the hatch opened outwards with a loud sound. Instantly, the air in the airlock flew out into space. Robotas flew out together, as they were holding onto nothing having jumped on the empty space suit. Rei flew too, but the safety rope held her tight and supported her from flying away. Rei seized the safety rope and went over to Victoria. She faced her back to the spaceship wall. She straightened herself. It was not over yet. Robotas were not as frail as humans, and they were resistant to the vacuum state. Robotas don¡¯t die. A Robota was hovering in space and a much larger Mars was seen. The Robota was smart enough to wear a space suit. It had activiated the MMU(Manned Maneuvering Unit) and approaching towards Victoria. The other two Robotas were nowhere to be seen. In space, as there is no transmission medium, if one does not spout something out, it is impossible to move towards a desired direction however strong you may be. ¡°Right! Come on!¡± shouted Rei. She held a pistol in her hand. But she could not pose a normal shooting posture. She had to hold the pistol with her left hand, and put her gloved right finger behind the trigger. ¡°It¡¯s OK. I am a clay pigeon shooter, Tina!¡± said Rei. She felt much better having said that. She felt as if she crossed arms with Tina, which was much less lonely. Rei was confident. She targeted below abdomen of the Robota. She remembered Hugh once telling her that the core part of a Robota which functioning like human brain was situated at that point. It was an information which Humanity extracted from Boston Mechanics. The Robota did not seem to notice Rei holding a pistol. It was approaching towards her in a constant speed. As it came into a shooting range, Rei pulled the trigger. No recoil. It was misfire. ¡°It¡¯s OK. Be calm,¡± Rei assured herself. She got rid of the blind shell and loaded the pistol again. Robota had approached to about 10 meters distance from Rei. Its face was half ripped off. Rei hit her body hard onto the ship¡¯s wall. Although no sound was heard, the bullet had been fired. The sound¡¯s wavelength could not spread in a vacuum state space. The bullet made a hole in the lower abdomen of the Robota. As a reaction to the energy, the Robota moved afar. Yet, it was still moving. Rei waited for it to come nearer. When it approached upto 20 meters distance, she fired another shot. She saw an electric flame as the bullet hit the Robota. It went afar once again. Still, it wasn¡¯t over yet. ¡°Die! Die!¡± cried Rei. As the Robota came close again, Rei shot the remaining seven bullets in a row. With the final bullet fired, the Robota distancing away, suddenly flew terribly fast towards Rei. It had burst the nitrogen tank of the manned orbit unit. Rei did not panic. She kept her head and put her foot towards the approaching Robota to turn its direction. Everything happened in an instant. The Robota flew to Mars. It was nearly 90 degrees, and with such degree, it would surely burn off in the atmosphere of Mars. She had won the fight she could not win. It was possible as Rei and Tina were together. Rei was floating mind blown. She did win, but she was in no condition for a party. ¡°Hugh...¡± said Rei. She had to let him go. All the time Hugh had flown together with Victoria. It must have been such a long and monotonous journey. Hugh had fixed the safety rope in front of the communication module. Rei followed to where the rope was connected. There was a blackish red mark on the linked adjacent rail. Rei untied the loop. Once again, Hugh floated nearer to Victoria. Rei waited till Hugh came closer. Then, she pushed him with all her might into the dark and endless space, so that he can finally fly away from the beastly Victoria. Rei did not look at Hugh¡¯s face. She wanted to keep the memory of Hugh as whom she had loved. She did not want to lose one of the few genuine memories she had. ¡°Goodbye, Hugh...¡± 17 The First Martian Chapter 17 The First Martian Catherine asked someone to bring over some coffee. Jay sensed the deep scent of roasted coffee beans. Jay could not reject drinking what he had been offered. Although Jay felt a little different, he did not know what the reason was. He drank a sip and he became a little warmer. Catherine¡¯s twinkling eyes stared at Jay. ¡°When you were covering the news of Mars Two Project....you did take a look at the contract, didn¡¯t you? It was literally a slave contract. Only obligations and no rights whatsoever, they were not even allowed to take up an insurance. It surely was a ''one way journey to death'', just like you wrote in your article.¡±said Catherine. There were some 2,700 people who passed the document screening. This project has become the dream post for the L-generation unable to get a job. The advent of Robotas have impoverished their spirits; and they desperately needed a goal to rely on. The dream of exploring Mars was similar to the vibe during the Age of Discovery. Dragonfly had added advertisement onto each one of the dreams and distributed it for their money-making business. Broadcasters were the accomplices. Articles pointing out the danger of the project was not welcomed by anybody. ¡°We followed the money flow,¡± said Catherine. ¡°That¡¯s basic, if you are an investigative agency,¡± said Jay. He had tried to search for the flow the money, but it was hard to find out. ¡°Correct. Desire leaves its trace through the flow of money,¡± said Catherine. Catherine leaned her body on the table. She had come nearer to Jay. Jay could smell a refreshing citrus scent. It was rare for Jay to notice a woman¡¯s scent. Especially since Tina¡¯s decease, Jay felt that he had become over sensitive. He was letting his guard down. ¡°As you tried to prove, we found out a clue that the explosion of Stumpalos, Mars One Project rocket was Dragonfly¡¯s plan. A huge amount of money was deposited to Space Odyssey, in charge of the Mars One Project. An important fact was revealed during the investigation,¡± Catherine calmly continued her explanation. Jay stared at her lips. Her pointy lips had crimson red lipsticks on. The light upon her face were reflecting on her lips making them gleam and shine. ¡°Tina...was never on Stumpalos,¡± said Catherine. Jay blinked his eyes. ¡°During the takeoff, the one sitting on the Stumpalos'' command module was not Tina. It was another pilot named Cheng, who had similar stature with Tina,¡± said Catherine. Jay¡¯s doubt was finally proved. Yet, Jay was distant. It was supposed to be a shocking news but he did not feel that way. Rather, Jay was concentrating on Catherine. Catherine¡¯s voice color, tone and even the breathe in between every word she spoke... ¡°During the Boston Mechanics days, they concentrated in developing the neural link. Howard Mason had Charcot Marie Tooth disease. When he declared that he will make a ¡®world without any disabilities¡¯, everyone took it word by word, but he had a secret purpose,¡± said Catherine. Jay felt her voice as sweet as cotton candy ; he thought his sense was totally strange. Jay remembered Howard Mason giving a speech under the pin lighting. The scene was portrayed in his brain like a stop motion miniature. It was as if he could count every little dust on stage at the time. ¡°The real purpose was elsewhere. Humanity tenaciously dug into it due to that reason,¡± said Catherine. Jay remembered the front court of Boston Mechanics. There was a person who came into his sight in that open space. It was none other than Hugh, who was one of the 4 pilots of Mars Two Project. ''Why is Hugh demonstrating with Humanity members?'' Jay thought. But it was not a logical thinking. It was an ambiguous and surreal thought, somewhat like some thick smoke lurking around. ¡°What he has created is something called ACR, Artificial-Consciousness-Receptor. It is a system which can hold onto the connectome pattern. Mind uploading is possible, and if their invented neural link gets connected, it becomes possible to invade a human body with blood flowing in its veins,¡± said Catherine. Jay rubbed his right arm with his left hand. He felt awkward. It was as if thorns were sprouting from the inside of his body, penetrating through his skin from beneath. His senses were alert. ¡°Clinical test or FDA approval will not be possible under the current legal system,¡± Catherine laughed out loud regardless of context. She was beautiful. Jay shook his head, something weird seemed to be happening in his brain. Everything started to become hazy.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°Howard Mason wanted a faraway place where nobody interferes for a long time ahead ; He built ''Out Post'' on the other side of the moon. But it is too near. Moon is reachable by many. That¡¯s why he chose Mars,¡± explained Chatherine. He felt as if his forehead was being pricked with needles, and he held his head tight. ¡°Ahh... it''s almost over. Wait just a second,¡± Catherine spoke to him as if to soothe the child who was suffering from treatment. ¡°There were obstacles. You, who were poking around here and there. Also X, who saved you from the car accident. What''s worse is that the two obstacles are connected to each other," said Catherine. Jay was engulfed in an unbearable pain. He did not know why. Jay¡¯s face became distorted. ¡°What are you doing to me,¡± said Jay groaningly. Catherine shrugged her shoulders. Her lips showed that she was mocking him. ¡°Where is X? How are you two connected?¡± Catherine questioned Jay. Jay replied, ¡°X? I don¡¯t know where he is.¡± Jay really did not know. Jay only met X once at the Trinity Church. On his way to the office from an interview with Rei, X called Jay. X said he would remotely hack the self-driving car. And X warned that if Jay does not get off the vehicle, he will die; that is why he got off right away. All of a sudden, Catherine started giggling, ¡°You are not lying after all. The reason we input the neural link into you, is to find out whether there is a secret we are unaware of. We ransacked through your mind just now. We searched for every memory fragment in your consciousness.¡± It was a grotesque sound. Everything surrounding Jay started to fall down mushily. The table, chair and even Jay¡¯s body was vanishing. ¡°Regretfully, there is nothing. I will have to find X myself. He is my brother after all, I assume he will come to me sometime,¡± it was not Catherine, but Howard Mason, standing in front of Jay. Like a legendary sniper, he pulled a silver pistol out from his pocket. ¡°I prepared this pistol as you imagined it in your brain just before. I will be gentle with you, don¡¯t you worry. Now, it¡¯s really about time we say goodbye,¡± said Howard Mason. The pistol was just a metaphor. Jay was lying at a Dragonfly secret laboratory, with his skull wide open. Four Robotas without skin were standing by his side. One of the Robotas cut Jay¡¯s spinal cord with a sharp scalpel. .... Victoria arrived on Mars at expected time and place. Victoria-Destiny module touched down vertically on the red soil of Mars ; there was no event leave footprints on Mars'' red land. After the heat of the reverse propulsion engine cooled down, the hatch of the Destiny Module opened. Only one person came out through the door, grabbed the stairs, and came down ; It was Rei, also was Tina. The artificial consciousness and Rei had found compromise : a kind of compromise. They came down to Mars together. Rei has succeeded in dominating one of the four modules, the Destiny through a rather manual way. She took out all the electrical wiring at the module. Her intention was to cut all connection with the artificial consciousness, and to operate the module manually. The artificial consciousness had no choice but to let Rei do that ; artificial consciousness had lost all the Robotas that act as his hands and feet. Also, it was not possible to segregate Destiny module. Rei had caused grave setback in the original plan of the artificial consciousness. It could not set the Robotas down on Mars. Rei cut off all the circuits, so he could not control the Hipnos-Leonardo module and land it on Mars. There was a glitch in his plan of creating the base. Rei, for the time being, need not worry about further attack from the artificial consciousness. The first thing Rei did when she landed on Mars was to draw lines with red soil and rocks on Mars. She managed to find extra food from the cargo ship which had arrived earlier ; the food was only enough to last for a month, even if eaten little by little. There was no way she could send a signal to Mars. Without help of the artificial consciousness, she could not open the lock of the communication facilities. Rei had no choice but to try the final method . She began drawing letters; like a pilot having landed on an uninhabited island. Rei had bare chance of surviving. Even when a rescue ship departs from Earth having seen Rei¡¯s message, it will take more than 6 months to arrive at Mars. But Rei didn''t want to give up ; Rei didn''t want to lose against artificial consciousness. She is the first Martian, the first humanbeing who landed on Mars. Rei made the third letter of the word ¡°HELP¡±. Suddenly, tons of memories from far away came to her mind. It was not Rei¡¯s but Tina¡¯s memories. Pieces of unerased memories became alive again like plants watered by long-awaited rain. A yellow sports car, a man, sensual touch... Rei sat down on the ground with a shovel in her hand. Tears ran down her cheeks beneath the visor. Rei wept. A day on Mars is about 30 minutes longer than a day on Earth. The sun was going down. The sunset on the western sky of Mars was filled with blue. A shooting star was falling diagonally across the sky. It couldn''t be a Hugh''s body. But Rei wanted to think so. Rei got up. She gazed at the direction the shooting star fell in the pitch-black darkness, and saluted with her right hand up the visor, just like Tina saluted to Jay on the day of their farewell. THE END