Glory on Mars by Kate Rauner Page A

hour.
    The modules had drifted quite far apart.
    "Right behind you." That was Luis' voice.
    "You go first," Ruby said over the ship channel.
    "Luis is very good at this. I like to watch," she
added without glancing at Emma.
    Jumpship Two maneuvered to the habitat module,
reached out its arms, and grabbed the lifting lugs at the forward
end.
    "This'll take a few hours. See you later," Luis said
as he towed the module away, accelerating to match the speedy
little moon when Phobos caught up with him.
    "Thanks, Ruby," Emma said. Psychologists had trained
her on how to form relationships so she grasped for something
positive to say. "I appreciate getting such a good view."
    "We're taking the empty fuel module down," Ruby said,
ignoring her attempt. "Luis will drop the habitat module on Phobos.
The bots there built a pad for it. You know there's a squad of
construction robots on the moon, don't you?"
    Of course I do, Emma thought with irritation. But she
mumbled some thanks out loud, which sounded stupid.
    "Once he sets the habitat in place and the
construction bots hook up the Phobos power station, we'll have a
handy little maintenance base." In addition to maintenance, Phobos
Base was a lifeboat of sorts for Kamp Kans, an evacuation base in
an emergency. Emma knew that, but thought saying it out loud might
be unlucky.
    "Time for us to grab the empty fuel module."
    Emma had viewed simulations, but watching Ruby
capture the module was still fascinating. She matched the
jumpship's attitude to the forward bulkhead of the module, deftly
closed the grapplers' fingers around its lugs, and reoriented so
the module hung in the center of the jumpship's square frame. The
engines pivoted and they slowly lost altitude.
    Emma watched the Tharsis volcanoes pass under them as
the jumpship made a complete orbit before slowing over Peacock
Mons. Nothing could be more desolate than the drifted, pock-marked
surface. She tried to imagine the entire plain enveloped in a
massive haboob sand storm with even the mountain tops lost.
    The ship shivered with the effort of descent and she
lost sight of the ground from her window. Emma was alternately
pushed down and released as the engines fired on and off, adjusting
their descent. She gripped the armrests tightly and exhaled slowly.
Dust blew up around the windows as Ruby set the module on its
waiting pad against the long Spine of the nederzetting, disengaged,
and rose up again.
    "We're docking at the south modules," she said over
the vibration of the engines. The jumpship settled on a large pad
and docked.
    "Bingo!" Ruby said. "You can take your helmet off
now. We're home."
     
     
     

Chapter Thirteen: Jumpship
Down

    Emma pulled off her helmet and the cat's yowls
assaulted her ears. She started to push her legs down to stand, but
fell back.
    "I feel dizzy."
    "Gravity," Ruby said. "But then, you'd know that,
wouldn't you?"
    She unbuckled the cat carrier and passed it to
Emma.
    Emma wasn't looking forward to carrying the cat's few
extra pounds. Mars gravity was only two fifths that of Earth, but
it was crushing her now. She was not, however, about to let Ruby
hear her complain. What was that woman's problem? She slipped out
of the harness and levered herself slowly from the seat.
    Dust still hung thickly around the ship, but Emma
could see a module's hull through the cabin windows. The jumpship
rested against a retaining wall, docked to an airlock on the
module's upper level.
    Anyone coming in from the surface through the lower
level airlock would have to vacuum off dust and doff their suit
before entering the module. Surface dust was irritating to people
and damaging to seals and filters. But Emma and Ruby were clean and
continued straight through.
    A cheer sounded as Emma stepped out of the airlock
and the cat went suddenly silent. Settlers greeted them,
alternately giving Emma hugs and propping her up as she toppled
under their enthusiasm.
    "Here, sit down." Someone pushed a chair towards her.
Emma