World Engine by Stephen Baxter

Author:Stephen Baxter
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781473223202
Publisher: Orion
Published: 2019-09-18T16:00:00+00:00

THREE

On Her First Mission to Phobos

39

As Malenfant had already learned, getting outline approval for a flight into space from the top councils of the Common Heritage wasn’t enough. ‘Ratification’ had to follow. It was going to be necessary for the mission plan for Malenfant’s quixotic journey to Mars and Phobos to be approved by various safety-conscious lower levels of what passed these days for the governance of mankind. People would even vote on it, the way Malenfant had seen the citizens of Birmingham vote every other day. The process had begun before the crew had landed, but a final verdict was thought to be some days away yet.

Malenfant was restless. He didn’t hide it. Stuck in the Sahara Forest, he paced about, unable to settle. The antique spacecraft distracted him somewhat. He didn’t even try to feign interest in the sightseeing jaunts to other aspects of the great afforestation project that Kaliope tried to fix up for them, filling in the time.

Deirdra seemed fascinated by this caged-up mood. ‘Were you always like this? Sort of – impatient.’

Malenfant snorted. ‘Look, I was a booster pilot. Not on-orbit crew. My flights lasted hours, no more. But I did plenty of simulations of longer missions, during my training and after. I spent enough time in various confinement tanks, believe me. Waiting around for a specific purpose, for a reason, I was fine, if I had a goal. It’s when I had shit to do and some bureaucracy or other was stopping me getting on with it – that’s when I had the trouble.’

Kaliope was calm and contemplative as ever. ‘But in this case, that “bureaucracy” is the process of gaining the informed consent for your jaunt from an interconnected mankind, Malenfant. For a venture pretty much without precedent in the last few centuries. I suspect there are plenty of people who see you, a relic of the wrecking generations, as being about to make an old mistake all over again. But on the other hand, as various global polls show—’

A glimmer of hope. ‘What?’ Malenfant snapped.

‘You are proving surprisingly popular, Malenfant.’ She smiled. ‘The man on the Pylon.’

‘That’s what I heard from some of my friends too,’ Deirdra said.

‘Really?’

‘Not all of them.’

‘Oh, of course not.’

The thought did distract him.

But fifteen minutes later he was pacing again.

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