The adventures of the Star Traveler Andromeda that started in Among the Stars, Beyond the Farthest Planet, and So Far From Home, continues in the final chapter The Voyage Home.
CHAPTER 1 A
Captain's log 1 August 2179.
The Kuiper Belt is in sight. We will be there tomorrow morning. Going through the belt the first time was exciting. Will the return trip be just as exciting or will it just be anticlimactic, knowing that this is our final year. We updated almost all the towers, except for those that were not on our trajectory. Will our timing be better on the return trip or will we leave them for another star traveler to update. According to my calendar, the third traveler will be taking off just about the time we will be landing.
We met new people and visited new planets. We have shared technology, learned about new cultures and customs with our new friends. So far we have two uninhabited planetoids that will sustain life should the government decide to colonize them.
Our course will change tomorrow. While we will still visit those two planetoids, we will come at them from a different direction. Navigation has shown that the course we were on will be too dangerous to cross at this time. Anya has spent many hours plotting our course. Usually it is she that has to remind me to take time out to eat and sleep. It felt very strange to have to remind her. Who knows, maybe this new course will show us other planetoids that we can visit. We still have enough materiel to put up several more relay towers to link up with different quadrants. Only time will tell. Maybe we will even be able to see the elusive Oort Cloud to see if it really is the birthplace of the long period comets, maybe even seeing the short period comet like Halley's. To be able to see any of those comets will be a coup.
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"Rich change our course to heading four two seven one point three nine."
"Aye Captain, course laid in."
"Raise shields after all the Stingers have landed."
"Colonel O'Malley reports that all the ships have landed and shields are raised, Captain." Rhea reported.
"Rich warp four."
"Aye Captain."
"Open ship wide channel." The tone rang. "Attention all residents of Andromeda. This is Captain Jensen. In an hour we will enter the Kuiper Belt. As before, be prepared for a lot of shaking. We will be inside the belt for at least twelve hours. All crew secure your stations and report readiness. Safe Haven is open for anyone who wishes to ride out our time there. This is not mandatory at this time,. I do ask that you all limit your movements in the corridors in order to avoid injuries. The Virtual Reality rooms, restaurants, shops, and bars will all be shut down to protect everyone from overloads. Thank you." The chime sounded again. "Bridge to Colonel O'Malley."
"Go ahead Bridge."
"Come to the Bridge when everything is tied down."
"Roger." Kacey walked through the Hanger working with her troops to tie the ships down for the upcoming bumpy ride. "We do not know how turbulent the ride back will be as we are on a different course. You all remember how bumpy the ride was before. Make sure all ships are secure."
"Colonel we have already reinforced the straps on the supply shelves."
Kacey rubbed her cheek and laughed. "Good idea. We do not need any more falling cases. Secure all the tools. Anything that is capable of becoming a projectile needs to be secured. When in doubt, lock it up."
"Tools are secured and the cases locked and tied down."
"Do not forget the Hanger office."
"Yes ma'am."
"I have a few things I need to secure in my office, then I will be out to help you finish up." Kacey left the Hanger and went to her office. She closed her computer and placed it under the desk. She worked for several minutes to make sure all her equipment was secured before she went back out into the Hanger to help her people. They finished with several minutes to spare. Kacey headed for the Bridge after dismissing most of her Marines. There would only be a few pilots left in case anything broke free. "The Hanger and offices are secure." Kacey said as she stepped off the lift and took her seat."
"Just in time lass, we will be entering the belt in five minutes."
"We are already feeling some of the ice hitting our shields." Kate stated.
"Too bad there is no way to collect some of that ice for the scientists to study." Rhea commented.
"Two minutes until we enter the belt, Captain." The pilot reported.
"Prepare to open ship wide channel." Kate ordered. They waited while the Kuiper Belt grew larger in the view screen.
"One minute, Captain."
"Open channel." The tone sounded again. "Attention all residents of Andromeda, we are about to enter the Kuiper belt."
Thirty seconds."
"Brace yourself for impact." The crew grabbed whatever they could to remain at their posts.
"Fifteen seconds."
"Go to yellow alert. Keep an eye on our shields."
The ship entered the belt with a large jolt. Crew members struggled to remain on their feet or in their seats. They could hear the chunks of ice that made up the Kuiper belt bounce off the shields. The ship rocked with the force.
"Shields are holding, Captain. That initial jolt did not affect them at all." Rhea reported.
"Keep a close eye on the shields. I want to know the second you see any fluctuations. Bring emergency lighting and auxiliary life support on line. They need to be ready to go if we need them."
"Kate what about transferring the power from the closed areas now instead of waiting until it is needed?" Kacey asked.
"Good idea. Start with Green Haven, Trash Recycler, Conference Rooms and VR rooms."
"You can also have the Hanger power and two offices. I only have a few people there if needed."
"Do it."
Kacey touched her communicator. "Mike?"
"Yes Colonel."
"Evacuate all remaining personnel from the Hanger. We are going to kill the power. Advise me when everyone is out."
"Roger, Colonel. Give us a couple minutes."
"Your mother reports that she has all the children in Kacey's quarters." Liam told them.
"I was hoping they would be with mom." Kacey stated,.
"Hanger to Bridge."
"Go ahead Hanger."
"The Hanger is evacuated."
"Thank you Colonel Anderson."
"All power has been converted and held in waiting." Rhea reported. "We have one hundred seventy five amps held in reserve for the shields."
The ship was buffeted by the larger ice chunks. The crew was bounced around by the turbulence.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is going to be a long journey through the belt. I ask you all to remain at your posts until we are in the clear. However I realize that we will all need periodic breaks so the Bridge Conference Room will be our temporary Mess Hall." Kate told the Bridge crew. "I expect everyone to take advantage of this because we will all need breaks from the tension of being bounced around."
"This does also include the Captain?" Liam asked.
"It does."
"Captain our sensors are picking up an extremely large ice chunk two thousand kilometers away."
"How large?"
"The size of Pluto. We are on a collision course with it."
"We will need to change our course to four one one three point one seven immediately."
"You heard her Rich. Change course."
"Yes ma'am. Course changed to four one one three point one seven." The Pilot reported.
"We will pass within three hundred kilometers from it and will be able to see it in the view screen in two minutes."
"Three hundred kilometers? Isn't that a little close?" Kacey asked.
"That is the safest route to travel as there are several large ice balls for the next thousand kilometers. A direct hit with any of them will do significant damage."
"Lovely we are between a rock and a hard place. This is the safest route?" Kacey looked at Anya and smiled to take the sting off her words."
"Compared to the other route it is. I have plotted the best course through the belt. It will require several course changes to avoid the largest obstacles." Anya reported.
"Work directly with the helm. Do not wait for me to order the changes." Kate stated.
"Understood Kate, yes ma'am." Anya and Lieutenant Minor stated together.
"There is that planet sized ice ball." Rich reported.
"Holy shit, look at the size of that thing." Kacey blurted out. Liam laughed.
"Keep us nice and steady Rich." Kate ordered as the ice flew past them.
"We are safely away from that ice." Anya reported.
The ship continued to shake. Suddenly the port side dropped.
"We have lost one of the inertial dampeners on the port side." Rhea reported.
"Transfer that power to all remaining port side dampeners to make up for the loss." Kate ordered. The ship leveled off.
"That is one crises taken care of."
"Engineering to the Bridge."
"Go ahead Bella."
"Captain one of the engines is running dangerously hot. We will have to shut it down to fix it."
CHAPTER 1 B
"Can we maintain our speed on the remaining three engines?" Kate asked
"We can, but it will put some stress on them. I believe they can handle it."
"This is the same engine that has been acting up before?"
"I think the problem is in the coolant relay. Unfortunately we are unable to fix it at this time due to the bouncing around."
"All right Bella. Once we are through the belt we will find a nice quiet area for you."
"Appreciate that Captain. Engineering out."
"I wonder what our third problem will be." Kacey stated.
"What are you talking about?" Kate demanded.
"You know what they say, that trouble comes in threes. We have had two already."
"Do not go looking for problems." Kate snapped.
"Look Kate, we will be in this belt for several hours. Do not start snapping at me yet." Kacey shot back. She leaned in close to Liam and whispered. "Perhaps I should find another area to sit out our journey." Liam shook his head no. Kacey thought for a minute then went into the Conference Room. She returned a short time later with a covered mug that she handed to Kate.
"What is this?"
"Consider it a peace offering." Kacey offered. "Careful it is hot."
Kate took the mug and sniffed it before taking a sip. "It's coffee." She smiled. "I accept your peace offering and apologize for snapping at you."
"Apology accepted, Kate." Kacey sat in her chair. The Bridge crew let out a collective sigh of relief as an argument was averted."
"Good job lass." Liam stated.
"We will need to make another course adjustment in seven point three minutes, to coordinates four zero one zero point seven eight." Anya reported.
"Coordinates locked in and awaiting further orders Commander."
"If we know the changes are coming, why not make them now?" Kacey asked.
"The reason we need to wait is due to obstacles in our path." Anya answered.
"Oh okay." Kate looked as if she was going to say something until Kacey held up a hand. "Just asking a question. I know how many hours Anya and even Talia put in plotting this course. I was not criticizing in any way."
"Planning on changing careers?" Kate joked.
"No way in hell. The Captain's chair is all yours."
The ship continued to rock as the ice debris hit against the shields. Throughout the morning they altered their course twice more without any additional problems. They had been inside the Kuiper Belt for five hours and had at least another seven hours of shaking ahead of them.
"Kate, our next course change is ninety minutes away. This would be a good time for the officers to start taking their lunch breaks."
"That is a good idea. Who ever is scheduled for the first lunch break, turn your stations over to your backups." Kate ordered. "Commander you have the Bridge." Kate, Anya, Rich and the Communications officer turned their stations over to their replacements and went into the Conference room.
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The day was long. The constant barrage of ice against the shields started to take it's toll. The shields had been reinforced twice and for the last hour the lights flickered and threatened to go out. They still had at least four hours inside the belt. Nerves from the constant barrage and shaking were frayed. Unable to sit still any longer, Kacey paced the Bridge.
"That restless spirit is still alive and well." Anya stated softly.
"She did make it several hours before it reared it's head."
"She did last longer than I expected." Kate added.
"Perhaps we should pipe some music onto the Bridge. That seems to keep her calm." Liam contributed.
"I do not know how you all can just sit there." Kacey responded.
The ship rocked almost knocking Kacey off her feet as she paced the Bridge.
"I think you should sit back down before you end up on your backside." Kate ordered.
"You know how much I hate inactivity. Sitting in one place with nothing to do is driving me crazy."
"Would you like to pilot for awhile, Colonel?" Rich asked.
"I am not that bored, Lieutenant." Kacey answered which caused the Bridge crew to laugh.
The lights flickered and went out when a powerful piece of ice hit the shields. The Bridge was in total darkness for several seconds before the emergency lights came on.
"Kacey, for your own safety, please sit down." Kate advised.
"We have lost our sensors and navigation boards. That last hit did a lot of damage."
"Damn, we are blind without sensors and navigation."
"Get me a tool kit and a couple flashlights." Kacey ordered. She pulled the front panel off the unit between the sensor and navigation stations. A crewman handed her the objects she needed. She turned on one of the flashlights and shone it into the area. Wisps of smoke curled out at her. "Shit it looks like that hit fried a couple wires."
"How long will it take to fix?" Anya asked.
"Depends on what you want done. If I replace all the wires it will take a couple hours. On the other hand if I just clip off the damaged areas and splice them, thirty minutes tops. Doing that will only give us partial sensors and navigation monitors"
Kate moved near Anya. "Partial sensors and navigation are better than none. Do what you can now. Once we stop to fix the engines we can change over all the wires." She said.
"Partial it is." Kacey stated and laid on the deck under the consoles. "Can you aim those flashlights in here so that I can see what I am doing?" She shut down the main power switch before she touched the damaged wires. Anya knelt on the deck next to Kate as they held the lights. Kacey picked up the wire cutters and cut the damaged sections off. She stripped the ends and twisted the ends together. She then twisted a wire nut over the ends and taped the wires. She repeated the process with all the wires that showed damage. She worked steadily and finally pushed herself out from under the console before she turned the power back on. The sensor and navigation boards lit back up. Kacey replaced the panel and stood up.
"Thank you Kacey." Anya and Rhea stated together.
"Not the way I wanted something to do, but you are welcome." Kacey replied. "You do not have full sensors, but it should be enough until we get out of the belt. Do you have any more course adjustments to make?"
"Just one more in about five minutes. That will be the last one until we are through the belt."
"Any chance we can find a nice quiet area and go into station keeping after we leave the belt?"
"That can be arranged. Why?"
"The repairs I made are temporary and even though we will be in a friendlier neighborhood, all the wires should be replaced to avoid any overloads or burnouts." Kacey stated and returned to her seat, not as bored as she was a short time earlier. Kate smiled. "What is that smile for?" Kacey asked.
"You thrive on the excitement."
Kacey only shrugged her shoulders.