Glory on Mars by Kate Rauner Page B

looked up thankfully and saw it was Daan.
    "You remember Melina and Sanni," he said, gesturing
to the two women from Settler Two. "But I bet you want to meet our
stars."
    "That's rubbish, mate."
    Daan was right. The two Pioneer Brits were easily the
most famous of the settlers, so well known by their nick-names of
Yin and Yang that no one used their real names anymore. They were
both from the same city in England, and if Emma closed her eyes she
could barely tell their voices apart. Both were tall and thin, but
there was no trouble knowing Yin from Yang.
    Yin was the darkest black man she'd ever met, while
Yang had pale milky skin and washed out blond hair. Despite their
common city, they didn't know each other before joining Colony Mars
but quickly became inseparable. Upbeat and chatty, responsible for
fabricating and constructing the Kamp settlement bays, they
remained public favorites.
    Emma pushed against the chair arms and stood to shake
hands
    "Do sit down, love, before you fall over," Yin said,
turning the handshake into a hug that lowered her back into the
chair. Yang produced a second chair to set the cat carrier on and
unzipped the flap.
    "Here's our new star."
    The cat pushed his head out cautiously.
    "There, there, baby." Sanni scooped him up. "I've
messaged with Lunar Base on how to adapt him back to gravity." She
cooed to the cat in baby talk.
    "Where's his personal bag?" Melina asked.
    "It's the yellow one."
    "The Loonies promised to pack a special cushion with
his things..."
    "I'll find it," Melina said, hopping into the
airlock.
    "What's his name?"
    "We didn't name him," Emma said. "Thought we'd wait
until we got here."
    "He's the only cat in the world," Daan said. "He
doesn't need a name." He reached out a hand to pet the cat, but
hesitated. "Can I hurt him?"
    "Stroke him along the side, like this, while he's
recovering. Poor little guy," Sanni said, carefully adjusting how
she supported him. "He's been in zero-g almost since he left his
momma. I've read all the Lunar Base reports. He's got a medical
chip implant that the Loonies developed especially for cats, did
you know that?"
    Emma had to creep down the ladder to the docking
module's lower level, and rest again in a chair. Daan pointed out
the lower airlock to her, where three bright blue surface suits
hung, ready for a ground-level exit. After a few minutes rest,
everyone walked through the interior airlock to the adjacent
habitat module from Settler One. There was a table in the center,
just like in S-3's habitat, and six door flaps to tiny private
rooms reconfigured for use in gravity.
    "I'll help Emma with her suit," Melina said. "Daan,
why don't you get her some water?"
    Taking the suit off was easier than putting it on.
They slipped off the thermal layer, peeled down the compression
layer, and tied the sleeves around Emma's waist so the shoulder
ring balanced on the knot.
    "It's best to keep some pressure on your lower body
until you're ready to lie down," Melina said. "So the blood doesn't
pool in your legs."
    Someone produced Emma's personal bag and she pulled
on her striped shirt. Daan gallantly offered a cup.
    "Ah," she said. "Water that stays in a cup.
Thanks."
    "I can't take credit for the gravity," Daan said. "Or
blame, for that matter."
    Emma looked up at him. His wavy blond hair bounced
around his head as he smiled back. She quickly took another
sip.
    The settlers unloaded the jumpship, interrupting
themselves to talk with Emma or get snacks at the habitat's food
printer. The gathering felt like a party. Ruby checked on Luis'
progress from time to time. He dropped the S-3 habitat on Phobos
and picked up the knarr cargo module from orbit. He'd arrive
shortly.
    "Jumpship Two is descending." Governor spoke over the
habitat audio channel.
    "Luis will drop the knarr at the end of the north
string of modules," Ruby said. "Governor, north imager on screen,
and put his channel on audio."
    "...my approach," Luis said. "Looking good."
    The screen