CHAPTER 13. REPAIRS AND PROGRESS.
When Michael had considered the possibility of alien life-forms, it had never crossed his mind that they would need to do something as mundane as washing up; but it was happening right in front of his eyes, Kandras was standing at the sink in the galley and was meticulously cleaning up after their meal.
The task was soon completed and all the utensils were returned to their proper place. Michael felt good after the meal and was ready for anything. "Are you back to normal, Kandras?" he inquired.
"As well as can be expected. ...it will be a little longer until I'm totally back to normal but I'm ready to start work if you are.”
"I'm fine. ..let's go and look at the damage."
Kandras lead the way back to the Command Area and looked critically round at the mess. With the bodies removed the task did not seem so forbidding.
“Is it possible to repair the viewing-panel?" asked Michael.
"Yes it is a fairly simple operation. The big worry is what the dust and debris may have done to the electronics and guidance systems."
"Shall we put our space suits on and do the panel?" suggested Michael enthusiastically.
“No... It won’t be necessary.”
"Surely you will have to decompress the cabin to fit a replacement, won’t you?” insisted Michael.
“No we do not carry any spare panels at all. They are very simple to make due to the design of the vessel. We will clear up the debris first, so that it will not impair the repair.”
While Michael busied himself putting the larger rocks and broken glass-type material into some bags, Kandras went away and returned with a comprehensive tool kit. Sixteen screws secured the inner window panel which also had a rubber-like seal inserted in it. Kandras soon removed the surround and with Michael’s help removed the jagged remains of the smashed panel. Soon the actual surround was spotless.
The next step was to clean the inner side of the shield itself. This was done using a solution and some cloth. In the meantime Michael had been given a tube which slotted into a plumbed-in suction point contained on the bulkhead. Very carefully he went over the floor and the instrument panels picking up all the fine dust and small debris. He covered the whole area three times before Kandras was satisfied. All the bags of dust were ejected through the airlock and the Command Area was looking as it should... clinically clean.
Kandras left and returned with an odd-looking machine; it had several dials and a long flexible tube with several nozzles. It appeared to be electrical because Kandras plugged it into the master control panel. He then selected a setting and switched on the machine. A purple light glowed and the machine gave an insistent hum which fell away to a purr when the purple light eventually went off.
Two pairs of protective goggles were produced and Kandras put his on. It was soon obvious to Michael that they had not been designed for him but he eventually arranged them so that he got some protection. Kandras then sprayed a very light, fine liquid onto the back of the protective shield. Michael desperately wanted to know what was happening but he curbed his curiosity so as not to distract his colleague.
As if sensing the unasked question Kandras turned round and said, “That is a coating of lubricant... an essential part of the process.”
He then reset the machine and started to spray again. This time he worked slowly and methodically and sprayed a thick, clear, jelly-like substance from a thicker nozzle. This time he sprayed right into the reveals of the window surround and continued right across the back of the shield. The substance was like a liquid glass and after three applications it smoothed itself out and became the necessary thickness. Even as he watched Michael saw the surface tension of the substance take over and smooth itself out to a highly glossed finish. The surround with the rubber seal was replaced and screwed down.
Kandras then cleared away the equipment and inspected his handiwork. “It’s a good job… it looks like a perfect repair.”
He crossed to the panel and pressed a button. Immediately the shields started to retract and Michael was very impressed to see that the new panel looked just like all the others. He was not impressed to see the closeness of the rocks, particularly the big diamond-tipped one which had done the original damage.
It must have had a similar effect on Kandras because he immediately dropped the shields again but was obviously pleased and satisfied with his repair.
"We must manoeuvre ourselves away from this deadly place," observed Kandras. "I am now going to check out the motors, I would be grateful if you would allow me to go through the routines on my own. I have a lot to do and I wish to remove us as soon as possible. When we have a little more room I will instruct you."
Kandras gestured towards one of the cabin padded seats. "Please make yourself comfortable."
Michael went and sat down in the plush, padded seat. It was atrocious; nothing fitted, it was too big, the straps were all wrong, the ergonomics of the seat came in all the wrong places. As Michael wriggled and squirmed in an effort to make himself comfortable he heard a strange, happy, gurgling sound and when he looked up he realized that Kandras was actually laughing at his predicament.
“I take it the chair does not fit,” said Kandras between gurgles. "Go and find yourself some cushions and pillows and see what you can do to improve your comfort."
Michael grinned back and purposefully strode off to one of the cabins to find the necessary articles. When he returned he found that there was some adjustment on the seat and between the pillows and the adjustments he eventually found a compromise and settled into his seat.
In the meantime, Kandras had been checking and cross-checking circuits on the main control panel. Now and then he made slight adjustments until he was, at last, satisfied. Eventually he pressed a button and the control panel slid back and another panel with levers and a V.D.U. installed on it slid smoothly into its place. He pressed another button and an auxiliary panel with another V.D.U. silently slid up from the console top. As he manipulated the controls a mass of signs and hieroglyphics appeared on the screen.
Michael correctly guessed that this was the on-board computer; it was very neat and probably very powerful. The big problem was that he could not understand any of the symbols displayed. Kandras then turned to the other screen and switched it on. Michael understood this one straight away. There in frightening three-dimensional realism was the view of the rock field outside the ship. The diamond-tipped, murderous rock was still there glinting maliciously.
At the touch of another button, four lights lit up on the control panel, a purple, a red, an orange and a green. Immediately a quiver ran through the fabric of the ship and a low buzz permeated the Command Area. The lights switched themselves off as the motors slowly warmed up and there was no feeling, or sound, as the orange light switched itself off to leave only the purple. Kandras firmly strapped himself into the pilot’s seat, made a slight adjustment for complete comfort and turned to Michael. “Are you firmly and comfortably strapped in, Michael?”
“Yes,” said Michael, who was literally shaking with excitement . Kandras put his four hands on the four levers and gently manipulated them. His dexterity fascinated Michael who found it difficult to comprehend how one brain could move four limbs so completely independently.
They both watched the three dimensional screen. Before they moved an inch Kandras checked both sides, the rear and also above and below the vessel to form a complete picture of their hazardous situation. Ever so gently the vessel backed away from the diamond-tipped rock. In his heart Michael knew that the rock was of inestimable value but he could not bring himself to ask Kandras to take it on board after the grief it had caused him.
The rock gently slid to the right of the screen as the vessel slowly turned to the left. Kandras allowed the vessel to glide serenely away for a few minutes then turned to Michael and said, "There is a button on the end of the left arm of your seat. ... press it please."
Michael did as asked and a deep green, crystalline orb on the end of a powerful looking support arm swung out from under the seat and came to rest in a position two feet in front of his chest. As he looked across at Kandras he saw that a similar orb was in front of him also. Kandras touched a switch and the orbs began to pulse with a soft green light, Michael immediately experienced a feeling of weightlessness.
"What are they, Kandras?" asked Michael.
"It is a device to prevent you being crushed by acceleration. Surely you have them in your vessels?”
"Our vessels don't accelerate quickly enough to need one, but the old rockets were uncomfortable though."
"I take it that your vessels are fairly slow… capable of sub-light speeds only?"
"Well of course many of our scientists are firmly convinced that it is impossible to exceed the speed of light," confirmed Michael.
"This vessel is capable of velocities up to about one hundred times the speed of visible light and this is quite slow by our standards," continued Kandras remorselessly.
“Visible light….. surely all light is visible?" challenged Michael.
"You, like us, are handicapped by the limitations of your senses. The fact is that even in the dark there is still a form of light which is on a higher harmonic frequency to visible light. It travels hundreds of times quicker and is totally undetectable by our senses. We discovered it by accident when we were looking for ways to improve our long-range radios."
"Does the same analogy apply to radio as well?"
"It does, but both things are very difficult to harness and use………. it is very advanced technology. Am I correct in saying that that nobody from your Planet has been beyond this Solar System?"
"We have not even managed the. outer limits yet. I was the first to reach the sixth planet which we call Saturn... our scientists are not even sure how many planets there actually are.
We know of nine but suspect there are ten," said Michael who was feeling way out of his depth.
"There are actually twelve planets in this system……. I will give you the data on them to take back with you. It should create quite astir. A lot of things will change as a result of our meeting... hopefully for the better."
Kandras then opened the protective shields which made the ship seem less claustrophobic. The three dimensional image was switched off and replaced with a two-dimensional long-range warning image. Finally he locked in the computer and turned to Michael. "Are you ready?"
“Yes, let's go,” replied Michael who was now feeling a little more apprehensive.
Kandras firmly gripped the four levers and flicked a hinged cover on the top of the extreme right one to uncover a red button. As he pressed it a series of lights blinked brightly on the two control panels. There was a similar arrangement on the left hand control lever and again there was a reaction when he pressed the uncovered button. This time there was a faint tremble through the hull which gradually built up to a powerful sounding, but quiet, low- pitched hum.
"Here we go,” said Kandras .
It was a strange sensation as the vessel gathered way. Michael had no previous sensations to compare it with but in his head he described it to himself as rather like falling down a tunnel. There was no sensation of G-force at all, in fact the tendency was to be pulled forward out of the seat. As he watched, the crystalline orb in front of him slowly changed colour, growing lighter and more intense all the time. Michael was apprehensive, exhilarated and curious all at the same time.
"Look ahead and prepare yourself for a wonderful sight,” remarked Kandras.
Obediently Michael peered ahead into the blackness and observed a faint glow in front of the vessel. Slowly it grew in intensity and took on a ghostlike appearance. Soon it had taken on a solid white aspect and there were dancing rainbow-like tinges round the edge as if from a lot of small prisms.
Kandras exposed a button on the top of the inner right hand lever and pressed it. Immediately the hum of the engines went up two tones, then a strange thing happened. The solid, white wall ahead of them gradually split up into the seven colours of the rainbow as if from a huge prism, but they danced in a beautiful ballet of colour. The engine note continued to rise steadily.
Up ahead there was a blinding, violet flash and that colour disappeared in a shimmering cascade of droplets. As the engine note increased the same thing happened again and this time the indigo disappeared. Relentlessly the engine note rose and the remaining colours grew brighter; another flash and the blue disappeared. Next was lost green, then yellow and orange. Finally, there remained a fantastic red display which was a solid circle round the edge and a leaping, restless display in the middle.
Suddenly the engine note rose quickly and there was an incredible red flash and the display disintegrated in all directions. Then there was only the blackness of deep space.
The engine note now rose remorselessly until it was inaudible. By now the orb in front of him was glowing with a white, incandescent light, obviously running at maximum power. Michael looked through one of the side screens and was amazed to see that a few of the stars were visibly moving. ...very slowly, but enough to see.
“Are we at maximum speed?” gasped Michael.
"No. ..nothing like,” laughed Kandras, “We are doing about five times the speed of light... the motors are not even warm.”
“What caused the light display?” asked Michael.
"Have an educated guess," replied Kandras mysteriously.
“Well, I would have to say that it must be the…..er. .'Light Barrier' or something,” ventured Michael.
“Very good.. but it is not just one barrier it is many. Some we do not perceive, like the X-Ray barrier, but they are all there, the final one is the hardest which is the seven staged barrier of light. The lower frequencies go first and the highest last; after that it is just plain progress. However, our scientists suspect that it may be impossible to exceed Harmonic Light speeds.” Michael looked down at the orb and noticed that it was back to its deep crystalline green colour. “We do not need those now, we have finished accelerating,” remarked Kandras. He pressed the appropriate button and the orbs quietly folded away into their storage positions.
"Where are we going?” asked Michael quietly.
“Nowhere in particular,” smiled Kandras. “We 're just going to give ourselves room. a lot of it.”
“Are we leaving this Solar system?”
"Yes, we will clear the outermost planets very soon and then head for a point midway between your Sun and the next nearest star. It will take about two Earth days to reach a suitable co-ordinate. When you first begin to learn about piloting this kind of craft, believe me, you need plenty of room. In the meantime we need to swap basic technical information to give ourselves some common ground to measure time and distance."
“That could be very awkward,” puzzled Michael.
“Not if you are prepared to be honest,” replied Kandras knowingly. "Anyway I think we have done enough work for the time being!"
He reached over and flicked a prominent red switch on the panel and added, “The ship is now on automatic shall we eat? I feel quite famished.”
Michael did not need to think twice, he readily agreed, but as they both took off their harnesses and headed for the galley he was suddenly stricken with a very primeval urge that he had not encountered for quite a while. He needed the toilet and urgently.
He was so embarrassed he did not know how to formulate the question. Kandras looked round puzzled, sensing Michael’s distress. "What is the matter...what do you need?”
“We humans have certain bodily functions which we need to perform to remain healthy... do you have the same problem?”
Kandras now understood the problem. “You need the 'Waste Recycling unit'. please do not feel embarrassed or ashamed, all living creatures have the same problem. I apologize for being a poor host, but I have had a lot on my mind. I will take you to where you need to be... in fact you can bathe and wash yourself as well."
Michael was taken to a beautifully appointed room and Kandras pointed out the 'Waste Recycling Unit'. It was similar in shape to an Earthly one but was considerably bigger, it was also water sealed. Kandras left and Michael did what he had to do. He felt a little foolish as he sat there with his legs dangling like those of a child but, in spite of that, he was grateful for its use.
When he had finished he pushed an obvious large button above the unit and a seal came across and the contents were whisked away. Seconds later the unit was ready for reuse and a pleasant but unfamiliar odour permeated from it. The sight of the showers and deep baths persuaded Michael that he would benefit greatly from an all-over wash. He stripped off and looked around. He was puzzled that the tanks were so deep; he expected them to be long, but not this deep. They were all clear sided, like a large fish tank. He was ashamed with himself for having hit the nail on the head in such a clumsy manner. The creatures like Kandras were amphibious and would probably enjoy total immersion every now and again.
Having considered all the options, he chose a shower. He stepped in and slid across a very thick door, which he thought was strange. There was one button and a dial. He reasoned that the dial was the water temperature so he set it about one third of its maximum so that he would not be scalded. He then pressed the button and water cascaded over him from every conceivable angle... upwards, downwards, sideways, even the door had jets in it. The water was a little cool for perfection, so he adjusted the dial again until it was exactly what he wanted.
He noticed a bottle in the corner and hoped it was soap of some kind. It was. As he poured it out and rubbed it on himself there were copious amounts of clean smelling suds; he washed his hair and soon felt two hundred percent better. Another press on the button made the water subside and, dripping wet, but very clean, Michael stepped out of the shower and dried himself on one of the immense fluffy towels which were on the walls.
He looked at the clothes which he had been wearing non-stop for a week and shuddered at the thought of getting back into them. Wrapping a towel around him he padded off to find Kandras and, hopefully, a solution to his problem. He was greeted by the happy gurgling noise which hinted that Kandras was amused.
“Very elegant,” he chuckled. Michael once again blushed and explained his problem. Kandras nodded and went to his cabin. When he returned a few minutes later he was carrying a garment similar to the one he was wearing and a pair of briefs that would have fitted a three year old girl. He handed them to Michael who simply stared at them, completely perplexed.
Again there was a happy gurgling noise. "Don't worry, Michael, they fit me so they should fit you. In fact we only make these garments in one size because this material stretches to fit anybody."
Dubiously Michael mumbled his thanks and returned to the bathroom. To his amazement the trunks simply moulded and stretched to his contours. There was no elastication or anything, they simply stretched to a perfect fit and the natural built in resistance of the material ensured that it stayed put. The single piece coverall was exactly the same.
Michael inspected himself in the mirror and decided that the superbly tailored garment showed off his adequate physique to perfection. Michael was not muscle-bound but he was fit and there was an attractive definition in his build. He liked what he saw, then, suddenly, the moment was ruined. He wondered if Charlotte would have appreciated the sight of him and was instantly depressed. Swathed in gloom he returned to the bridge to find Kandras happily staring at the stars.
"Why so sad, Michael?"
"Oh. ..nothing really, I was just thinking about a friend.”
"Only a female could cause so much despondency. There is no reason why you should not see her again. We will search thoroughly, there is nowhere to hide from this vessel in a place as small as a Solar System. Incidentally, if you look forward and to the left we are about to pass the twelfth and final Planet in your system.”
Michael looked and saw a star-like blue blob which was growing rapidly, changing colours and looking slightly distorted. It grew and grew then was suddenly gone.
“It looked odd and distorted,” remarked Michael.
"That is because you are above light speed and the waves are compressed. The eye cannot perceive accurately under these conditions, but the instruments can.”
Kandras flicked a few switches and the image on the screen changed and showed a planet which was crystalline in appearance. It was very beautiful and looked to be a mixture of diamonds, emeralds, rubies, sapphires and a myriad other glistening rocks.
“How big is it?” asked Michael.
“Oh... about the size of the second planet in the system... but it is much colder, in fact the ambient temperature is very close to the point where molecular movement stops and density is at its greatest.”
“That is what we call Absolute Zero,” offered Michael helpfully.
“Well it’s a good name for it,” agreed Kandras. The crystalline appearance is caused by the frozen gases of what used to be an atmosphere. Everything is completely solid at that temperature. Another thing which you may not have considered is the temperature of space out here. You are a long way from any source of heat and consequently the temperature outside the vessel is very low and you need a very special suit to venture outside the vessel. Your primitive suit would freeze solid, including your gas bottles, almost instantaneously.”
"That is a discomforting thought,” mused Michael as his mind wrestled with the inadequacies of his species' knowledge and equipment.
Kandras changed tack suddenly, “Are you ready to eat?”
“Absolutely starving.”