Sentient Thrive (Thrive Space Colony Adventures) by Ginger Booth

Author:Ginger Booth [Booth, Ginger]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-11-04T22:00:00+00:00

25

“Down!” Remi shoved Ben’s helmet into the dumpster load of gravel along with his own. He hastily swerved his hips off of his case, then kneed Ben’s butt as well. The overhead was growing perilously close.

“Get out of here!” Ben objected, trying to rise.

“Too late.” Remi couldn’t reach the loose gravel hanging above them, held there by opposing gravity. But already they began rolling into a clear tunnel. Yes, there was some scant headroom above the container. But the dumpster was a tight fit. Its corners came within a hand’s length of the round corridor walls. He turned his helmet to cast light on the rear of the container. They were near its head. A heaping slithering pile of loose rubble lay between them and slipping out the back. They’d both already sliced their suits on this sharp rubble. And if they did jump out the back, their next trick would be to follow the dumpster.

All in all, he’d rather take a ride. Then again, getting a hundred tons of rock dumped on top of him wasn’t survivable.

Ben suggested, “We could jump up into a side tunnel if we spot one.”

Remi pictured this briefly. A hole would appear above for a couple seconds. They’d grab their gear, strain their grav generators, and fall up. And then they’d chase a dumpster. “Let’s not.”

Fortunately Ben was reasonable. “We jump the second we exit the asteroid.”

“But of course.” Their powerful steed slowed for a moment, and Remi tilted sideways. “First turn, left up. We memorize.” Under these conditions, mapping their path would likely lose them the tablet.

Ben propped himself up enough for his helmet to light the view ahead past the forward rim. They jostled in silence for a few minutes, making another veer. A continuing tilt to the right suggested a slow rotation as well. Remi concentrated fiercely on memorizing the sequence. Unless they came out right on top of their shuttle – and they didn’t expect to – they must recharge their air before hiking anywhere, and their batteries as well.

The container slowed more than usual. The reason became apparent as they negotiated a sharp turn left-up. And Ben’s lamp spotted a black hole before them. “Grab your gear!”

Remi scrabbled for the broken box and the sled. As they emerged into pristine star-studded blackness, the dumpster executed another 90-degree climb out of the funnel entrance at dead slow. He tossed the sled overboard, and leapt after it.

The dumpster’s artificial gravity vanished the moment he cleared its edge. He sailed through black vacuum over a pitch dark landscape. Only an absence of stars told him where the asteroid lay. And neither of his hands were free, clutching the box. He swore at himself in French for not taking a moment to duct-tape the damned thing closed. He even had the tape out, to fix the captain’s suit.

“Remi, you’re not on a parabolic,” Ben warned him.

Right. He managed to squeeze the box closed-enough with one arm, so he could reach his grav generator and pull himself down before he flew off the asteroid altogether.

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