The Incident: Space Thriller by Joshua T. Calvert

Author:Joshua T. Calvert [Calvert, Joshua T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-06-15T00:00:00+00:00

22

AMINA, DAY 4, STAR CITY, RUSSIA

"As agreed with NASA, Raschkin repaired the MBSU on the top of the ITS and you repaired the MBSU on the bottom that powered the PROM," Amina went through the events again after she had collected herself.

Ehrmann had told her about the EVA so vividly that she was caught in a kind of maelstrom that she couldn't allow to happen again. She couldn't imagine how terrible it must have been to be so helpless and so close to death, further away from humanity than anyone else.

"Raschkin finished before you and told you that liquid was seeping into his helmet. He was practically drowning in his suit's coolant and reported that he had to untether himself to move faster. He then lost contact with the station. You then ordered Michaels to use the newly repaired Canadarm to try to catch your colleague. However, Michaels officially refused the order, citing protocol and expressing concern about whether it was safe enough to use the repaired MSS. After a brief argument, you disengaged and jumped to intercept Raschkin while he was floating away, using your SAFER jetpack to return to the station and reach the airlock together. By this time, the Russian's helmet was completely filled with liquid. Fortunately, you reached the airlock, managed to hang on, and got him in and removed the helmet and liquid before he drowned."

"Yes," Ehrmann confirmed with an absent-minded look and closed his eyes for several heartbeats. When he looked at her again, she could almost physically feel his fear at the memory of what had happened.

Amina opened her file and flipped a few pages to a green marker. "The official EVA report states that both the SAFER jetpack, a maneuvering unit with cold gas jets strapped to one's back, and one of the seals in the coolant system had completely failed."

"That's correct." The German nodded. "That's what Oleg's own check after the EVA showed, and that's what the official report says."

"Raschkin checked his EMU himself. Unusual after that kind of accident where he almost drowned earlier, don't you think?"

"He insisted on it. But he didn't find any evidence that his suit had been sabotaged, so he concluded that he'd just had a lot of bad luck and that it was actually two simultaneous cases of total equipment failure. As unlikely as that may be, it's not impossible.

"How did Raschkin take it?" Amina wanted to know.

"You're actually asking if he expected something else."

She didn't answer.

"He just said: shit happens, if that answers your question."

"Thank you. What do you think?"

Ehrmann didn't seem surprised by her question and took his time answering. His jaw muscles were working and he chewed his lower lip several times.

"I have to admit I was skeptical of Patty during the incident and after. It was her job to check the suits before the EVA and make sure everything was as it should be - including the functionality of the jetpacks and the cooling system. She confirmed that both suits were working perfectly and that there were no problems.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.