“Yolanda. I'm cold. And why can't I see anything?”
She really did wrap her arms around him, making her best effort at a hug. “Muobo! You're awake!”
Her panicked response must have put him off, she saw his heart rate go rapidly up. “It's okay Muobo. You're fine. Just a little accident to your faceplate. We're going to get you back to the ship.”
“How long have I been out?”
She couldn't tell if he sounded calm or drowsy. In such a situation, the latter would be terribly frightening. In the near absolute zero temperature, the backup system was just enough to keep an occupant alive, it was far from comfortable. The opaque balloon inflated to fill the inside of the suit and had just enough insulation to keep to stave off hypothermia for 30-40 minutes. They'd all been through months of tests to know what it was like. Both oxygen deprivation and hypothermia were stalking him just less then an hour out.
“You've been out for...” She was shocked when she looked at her chronometer. “About 4 minutes.
Can you move your limbs?” She spoke carefully to keep the panic from showing and getting Muobo excited.
“Um...well I can, but it's kind of difficult. My limbs feel sluggish.
“It's probably the protection bladder. They said that it would make moving more difficult. But it's keeping you alive right now and that's the important thing. That's when she finally noticed what he was caught on. She was about to give an excited shout when she remembered that she needed Muobo to keep his breathing slow and even. Even so her own heart rate skyrocketed as she panned her lights over the ornate boxes. Each one was perfectly rectangular with carvings of the geometric patterns and the same four symbols covering the whole surface. At the edge of her lights reach, she saw what looked like a body. She made a painfully quick sweep with her camera for what seemed like the blink of an eye and an eternity.
Then with a force of will she never believed she had, she tore her eyes away from it and again spoke to Muobo. Alright. I'm going to lead you to the tunnel and you're going to hold onto my boot while we crawl back to the IEVs. She got down on her hands and knees after helping Muobo to do the same. It took another painful few minutes to disentangle him from one of the carvings on the boxes. They made their way to the tunnel with what felt like absurd sluggishness.
“At least this time I don't have to stare at your large booty.”
That's two mister! And don't expect me to let you get away with this much when we get back to the ship.”
His laughter was like a song in her heart as they reached the end of the tunnel. But now she had to figure out the best way to get them both back, and quick. If she connected the two IEVs and let him pilot himself, then he would have more protection from the cold, but there was no guarantee that he could operate it. They both knew the controls blind, but if he passed out....well they'd probably both die in that case.
Feeling like she'd taken enough risks for one day, she took the less dangerous route and tied him to the cabin of her own sled.
“Alright, now it's going to pretty cold as we speed back to the ship. But I promise it'll be short and I'll get you to a nice warm cabin as quick as I can.”
“Well it looks like you're the boss now.”
“And don't you forget it.” She said mockingly.
Using 110% throttle, she practically sank to the floor as they shot up to the rim. The second they cleared the edge, she sent out a mayday. First she made sure to turn off her intercom to Muobo.
“Yolanda to Sphinx, Yolanda to Sphinx! We have an emergency return!”
Isfaheem's voice was clear on the radio. “I hear you Yolanda. What's your situation?”
“Damn Muobo has a damaged faceplate. He's conscious but the life-support is on emergency backup. Get some heating pads setup, he may have hypothermia by the time we get him inside.”
His voice sounded edgy, but thank god he didn't sound panicked. “I'll get right on it, what's your ETA?”
Glancing down at her chronometer, she swore. “Um. I'm not sure. We covered a pretty circuitous path out.” She made her best mental calculations and hoped for the best. “Maybe 40 minutes to arrival.”
She heard his whistle and she didn't like it one bit. “Hey. I've got the pedal to the metal as the old folks say.”
“Alright. Do the best you can. And be careful on that landing. We still need you in one piece when you get here.”
“Will do.”