Trouble in Orion's Belt; A Stellar Journey
Chapter 3: The Stellar Trek

Simon was a little startled when he immersed himself inside the portal as it became deathly quiet save for the echo of footsteps. He looked back to see that the dim light of the portal fade into infinite darkness as it did ahead.

“Has anyone noticed that the entrance of the portal is completely out of sight?” he said and his voice echoed through the chamber.

They turned their heads but could see little more than the faces of the person behind them as they maintained the human train.

“I Think we have been introduced to an unknown realm of physics,” Richard echoed back. “We should refrain from talking until we get to the other side. It is extremely difficult talking around the echoes.”

The group continued on with the sound of their footsteps which did little to drown out the sound of their breathing. They walked for what seemed like a small eternity but it was a little more than two hours and a half with the sighs of anticipation. Finally Brad saw an opening in the distance and also notice a significant rise in temperature. Brad let out a substantial sigh of relief that echoed passed Simon.

“We’re almost there,” Brad said. “About two more minutes we will be on the other side.”

An echo of sighs ebbed through the corridor.

Brad finally emerged and continued walking as he watched the human chain spill out of the mouth of the portal.

“Okay, we’re all in,” he said as Simon stepped onto the floor.

Cheers rang out through the room.

“Oh, I’ve never walked so long in my life,” Jul complained loudly.

Richard turned to hug her.

“It’s been a while for me too,” he said. “But you’re going to have to get used to walking if you want be an archeologist.”

He kissed her forehead.

“I’m alright dad but I am going to have to adjust.”

“Oh we all will dear,” Donna said. “The heat is going to take some getting used to. Has anyone seen a thermostat?”

“Not yet,” Dave said. “Does anyone even know what time it is here?”

Jean pointed to a digital clock on the wall that read: 10:00 p.m.

“Well it looks as though Aumrill knows us as well as we know ourselves.”

“I thing she understands us more than that,” Richard countered.

“I will second that,” Simon agreed. “Has anyone notice that the portal is gone,” he added.

“Hmmm, no I was just studying the layout of the room,” Bob finally said. “This place is quite remarkable.”

He was referring to the large circular room with a domed ceiling of which they had just walked into.

“I really can’t wait to get to work in here; this is quite a lab.”

Dana was looking over some strange reflective suits with hoods and dark goggles that were designed to cover the eyes entirely and to filter bright light.

“Bob, look at this; this planet may be Earthlike in a lot of ways but it has some interesting differences,” she said.

“Apparently but let me take a look at those things. We won’t need oxygen or pressure suits but these suits have built in humidifiers,” Bob remarked. That must mean that it is dryer here.”

“Yes and a lot hotter. It’s really hot in here. Has anyone found the thermostat?”

Dave was on the opposite side of the circular room.

“The thermostat is over here,” he said. “It’s a hundred and one Fahrenheit; and at ten at night that that makes it pretty damned warm.”

“Can you reset it; it’s sweltering in here,” Julia added a comment.

“I’ve never known it to be this hot anywhere,” Jul reminded them.

“Just give it time, you guys, I just set the temp at seventy-five degrees.”

Simon was examining the small dark shaded rectangular windows that were about his eye level.

“A person could not see a bloody thing outside theses window to save his miserable life,” he remarked.

“Well, Simon, I think things may look a little different in the light of day,” Richard commented. “Since everyone here is so excited why don’t we all take a door and explore this building.”

He was referring to the eleven doors on the circular wall that were divided by the rectangular windows. There were a total of sixteen windows which meant there were two windows between all the doors except the door at the north east angle which had a window on either side.

“We may as well,” Donna said. “It may be late at night here but it was only early noon when we left.”

“Okay, mom, I’m going to check out this door to the left,” Jul said pointing to the door nearest her.

“Okay, dear, I’m taking this on my left,” she opened the door and walked through. “I’ll let you guys know what I replace.”

She looked down a corridor with three doors on either side and one on the end making a total of seven. She walked over and opened the door nearest to her. She slowly stuck her head into the room as she did not know what to expect. She saw work desks and equipment for taking soil and bio-samples. There were computers and a plethora of devices for various types of analysis. The walls were flat with a curved ceiling and the walls were aligned with the rectangular tinted windows. So she closed the door and went on to the next.

Meanwhile Jul had found her way to a room that she determined to be a pantry. She found varieties of food stuffs including coffee and tea.

‘They were right Aumrill doesn’t miss much,’ she thought. ‘There is plenty for the nine of us for the next three weeks.’ She was thinking of how her father had admired Aumrill and he stresses that she understands us more than we do ourselves. She could not help but notice that he was probably accurate in his assumption. She was satisfied with what she had found and proceeded to another door in the room.

Notwithstanding Simon was curious of the seemingly odd positioning of an extra door. The door turned out to be as it were the entrance from the outside. To his startled amazement he walked out into the open air where the temperature was exceedingly high compared to what he was conditioned. Nonetheless he walked out between the two angled wings that jutted out from the circular building. He took a deep breath of the warm air and walked further.

The sky was a pale green by the glow of a large green moon that hung majestically above him. He looked out at the landscape and although it was night and stars were visible the ground was well lit by the splendid moon. He could see clumps of trees in surrounding spaces in an otherwise barren landscape. He had no problem spotting the aircraft in an adjacent airfield.

He walked around the building and saw the outside of the rectangular windows. He could not see through them but the reflection of the moon was distinct.

He wanted to explore the building further but he got a glimpse of a figure in the corner of his eye. He turned his head quickly to see who it might be but the figure was gone. His heart skipped and raced because he knew very well that the figure was solid. “Richard, Dave was that you?” he said aloud. “Is it Jean or Bob?” but there still was no answer. He ran over to where he thought the figure was standing. He saw a vague impression of footprints but the distinction was not enough to take evidence. He immediately went back into the building.

Donna was just emerging from her quest when he walked in. “Donna?” he inquired.

“Yes, Simon what is it?” she asked recognizing the seriousness of his tone.

“Were any of the other men outside for any length of time?”

“Ah, not that I know of I thought everyone had taken a door to explore the building.”

“I saw someone out there but whoever it was wouldn’t answer my call.”

About that time Jul burst through her door.

“Mom you should see the kitchen Aumrill provided for us, it’s fantastic.”

“Jul dear, did you happen to see which door your father or Dave went into?”

“Not really; they were standing over by the rack of suits when I left. Why do you ask?”

“Simon saw someone outside and he was wondering if it may have been one of them.”

“It’s quite possible they could have gone outside but I really don’t know.”

“Richard has been known for practical jokes, hasn’t he?” Simon suggested.

“He has,” Donna admitted, “but it would be odd even for him this early on in the scheme of things.”

“Yes, it would be odd,” Simon agreed thoughtfully.

About that time Richard burst though his door and quickly walked to Donna, he picked her up and he kissed her hard square on the lips.

“Ha, ha, Donna I’ve found 15-A,” he said playfully.

“Whoa boy; not so frisky,” she said jokingly after kissing him back.

“Simon saw something outside that he’s concerned about.”

Richard set her down gently.

“What is it Simon?’

“I saw someone outside, but only for a moment and whoever it was wouldn’t respond to me.”

“Hmmm, I know you don’t have a tendency to overreact to things but we have been introduced to an extreme environment change. The temperature is exceedingly higher and even an increase in gravity can have a tendency to alter your perceptions.”

“I suppose that is a possibility but it didn’t seem like an hallucination.”

At that time Dave appeared through on of the doors. “There are some interesting control panels back there most of them are automated and are designed to track aircraft.”

“Yes, I saw the planes; they are just to the north of the building. I think you may be impressed with their designs. The Martians have a remarkable ingenuity.”

“Really,” Dave said, “would anyone mind if I take a look at them.”

“Not at all,” Richard said. “But I’m going with you.”

“And I’m going too,” Simon told them. “I’d like to examine them closer.”

Jean walked into the room at that moment. “What is all the curious excitement about?”

“The boys found some toys out in the yard and they are going out to play,” Donna told him.

“Well I suppose I should do as well,” he said as he walked out the door to join them.

“I wander where Bob and Dana disappeared to? “ Jul inquired.

“I think I’d like to talk to Dana about how we’re going to arrange this place to work for the next three weeks, Donna responded.”

The two women walked into the most likely door Bob and Dana may have gone. Donna put her head into a door and saw two people in the thralls of passion then quickly closed the door.

“I think the rejuvenation has had some interesting side effects,” she whispered.

“I hope we didn’t embarrass them,” Jul said.

“Quite frankly my dear, they didn’t notice we were there.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m quite sure.”

And out on the airfield Dave was fascinated with the three aircraft.

“Holy fiery Hell on water!” he said out loud. “These things are incredible. Just look at the sleek aerodynamics of this plane. The take-off can be vertical or horizontal and it is able to self morph at high speeds for maneuverability.”

“And how, may I ask, can you tell by looking at this thing?” Simon asked scratching his chin.

“When you look the creases there are finely meshed hinges that are similar to Earth designs but are noticeably more advanced. And over there, that thing that looks like as helicopter, I can wait to try that one out.”

“Well, Simon Dave has a reason to be excited because he and I know that the Martians designed these things with him in mind,” Richard said.

“Are you saying that these planes were designed for Dave personally?” Simon asked.

“Of course,” Richard responded. “The Martians are astute in their observations as you well know. They may have something in mind with this venture that hasn’t even occurred to us. These planes were modeled after Dave’s knowledge and experience with aircraft. I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t match it to his DNA.”

“I couldn’t agree with you more, Richard. I could have designed and built them myself if I’d had the resources.”

“So, as you were saying earlier the Martians sometimes appear to understand us even more than we understand ourselves and these aircraft are a prime example of that assumption?”

“It is obvious that these planes were designed for a specific purpose as well as in a way that Dave can easily adjust to,” Richard elaborated.

“Let’s climb aboard and take a look at the controls and instruments,” Dave suggested, “my curiosity is boiling.”

Inside the control room the sensation of newness was overwhelming. Dave sat down in the pilot’s chair almost drooling with anticipation. He fondled the controls excitedly as he studied the instrument panel. He reached over flipped a switch and the instrument panel lit up. He then pressed a button and said: “Control tower this is Dave. Can you read me . . . over?”

“We read you loud and clear Dave, “came the distinctive voice of Julia Davis, “and I can see you clearly over the monitor as well.”

Dave pressed another button and Julia’s face appeared on the monitor. “Now I can see you,” Dave said gleefully.

“Is there anything we can help you with,” Julia asked in her general professional manner.

“Not at all, Julia, we were just testing some of the equipment.”

“Very well, Dave we will continue getting things organized. Call us if anything important arises.”

“This is all so fantastic,” Jean said after recovering from his state of awe. “The more we examine the equipment the more confident I feel that Aumrill is sincere in providing us with all we need to complete this expedition.”

“I never held a doubt about that,” Richard assured. “But there still remains the fact that Aumrill never told us what the actual objectives of the expedition.”

“That is the full reason I was skeptical at first, but in the past the Martians had always come through and in hind sight their reasoning becomes clear.”

“Yes, well, all on our end it’s an unmistakable chance to reclaim the glory of our long lost youths.”

“It is that,” Simon admitted, “the compelling aspects of this venture are overwhelming.”

At that time the moon was noticeably higher in the sky and another moon was slipping above the horizon.

“Wow, it isn’t enough that this planet has a brilliant moon but it has another as well,” Dave remarked.

“There are a total of three moons and all of them are larger than Luna,” Richard informed them.

“It looks as though the one on the rise is going to make things even brighter,” Dave remarked.

“It should after-all Alnilam is a ‘Blue Giant’ and is far brighter than our Sol. Even though this planet is as far-away from Alnilam as Jupiter is from Sol the difference should be quite significant.”

“Which pretty much explains the temperature,” Dave added for him.

“Precisely.”

“Oh, will you look over there.” Dave said in a startled tone.

“What is it?” Richard asked.

“There was just someone standing out there.”

“Out where? There’s no-one out there.”

“I’m glad I’m not the only one seeing spooks,” Simon remarked.

“I think you are both succumbing to the heat and stronger gravity,” Jean volunteered a remark.

“Yes, I won’t deny the possibility,” Simon said. “But it stands to reason that it’s unlikely we would experience the same hallucination.”

“I see your point Simon,” Richard agreed, “but maybe you planted the suggestion into Dave’s mind making it more likely.”

“I won’t deny that possibility either. Now Dave; did you notice what the figure was wearing?”

“Oh, that is peculiar; he was wearing a black bodysuit, sort of like a yoga leotard stretched over his body.”

“That’s interesting,” Simon responded, that is exactly what I saw.”

“Hmmm? This is getting interesting,” Richard agreed. Can you give us a little more details?”

“Well,” Simon began, “he was a bit tall . . .”

“Of about six and a half feet tall,” Dave finished for him, “with a slender muscular build.”

“My word,” Jean exclaimed. What is it that you two are seeing?”

“No need to jump to conclusions,” Richard interjected. “It still may be a shared hallucination. I think we should log it nonetheless for future reference incase it happens again. Okay, now let’s get back to the dome where everyone will be together so that we can devise a work plan.”

Shortly they were all together inside the dome to form the meeting. They were seated at a conference table large enough to accommodate the ten person crew.

“Now I’ll just call this meeting to order,” Richard said loudly gathering everyone’s attention

“Let’s form some work crews. Since there are ten people I think that it would be appropriate to have four sets of two that will work together at all times. Jul being the least experienced will act as an intern and will work with whatever pair needs her most. Is that okay with you dear?”

“Of course dad, I’m just happy that you are making me a part of this.”

“Well, you’re here we should all allow you to gain the best from this experience.”

“Okay, since we’ve been given a clock and not a calendar we will assume today is Sunday or Sunday Night.”

“Ahemmm!” Donna interrupted. “It’s more like Monday morning; look at the clock it’s 1:15 A.M.”

“Okay, so we’re on day two already. Anyway I’ve taken the liberty to print up our daily calendar. Sunday was day one,” eying Donna while spoke anticipating another interruption. Next Sunday will be day eight so- on and so-forth. Saturday the 21st will be our final day here and hopefully we will have accomplished something by then.

“It is my assumption that it was no mistake that the Martians set us up on the night side of the planet. It will be far too hot in the daytime to accomplish our goals. The reflective suits are just a precaution incase we need to go out in the daytime. It is my assumption as well that the daytime temperatures will exceed one-hundred-forty degrees Fahrenheit. We will take suits with us when we travel outside the area of the dome in case we get stuck. We’ve already had a chance to explore the planes but according to the schematic of this compound there are also assortments of ground vehicles on the other side of this dome.”

“ Dave and I will use the planes because the ruins I hope to examine are a number of miles from here. Now Simon and Jean will take the ground vehicles to their designated work sites.

Bob and Dana will work in the lab so they need to check with one of us from time to time.

Donna and Julia will be in charge of communications and recording data that is dispatched by radio. I haven’t forgotten Brad. Brad will accompany Jul and make sure she stays out of trouble.”

“Dad!” she exclaimed. “I’m an adult I don’t need a baby sitter.”

“Hey, don’t get yourself worked up dear,” Brad said. “Richard is only concerned with your lack of experience my capacity would be more-or-less a standby advisory. From the looks of it he’s given me the easiest job in the compound.”

“Thanks Brad,” Richard said. “I made a mistake in my communications. You will also be her coach and tutor throughout this expedition.”

“Are there any more questions before we go on to the next phase?”

“Yeah, when do we eat?” Brad said without cracking a smile. A chuckle broke out around the room.

Richard having concluded the first part of the meeting then prepared for the next.

“I will be the coordinator but for the most part when we are out on our proposed assignments we will be on our own,” Richard said respectfully. He was fully aware that this was a very capable crew and they were all passionate about their work.

Bob and Dana were the best laboratory researchers he had ever met.

Donna was very good at making snap decisions and be remarkably accurate

Dave was a skilled pilot with a powerful sense of loyalty and endurance.

Julia Davis was an intuitive interpreter with an almost psychic perception of language.

Jean was a hard working archeologist with a broad perception of details.

Simon was a dedicated scientific archeologist who demanded perfection from his workers with a strong sense of humility that allowed him to step aside while his colleagues performed their duties; attributed, he would say to his educational and disciplinary background.

Thomas Bradley Perry was a noted biologist with a good sense of humor and had tendency to perform some serious practical jokes balanced only by his sense of logic and his immeasurable genius.

Tthen there was Julia (obviously named for Julia Davis) a daughter to Donna Silver and himself. She was a bright young student of nature brimming with curiosity and a strong capacity for learning. Needless to say; he was proud of her.

“All of you will notice,” Richard continued, “an electronic notepad in front of you. If I remembered to turn them on it should read Monday, Day Two across the top.”

Everyone made murmurs of acknowledgement.

“Okay, these notepads have built in maps that will indicate your current position and show us the way back to the facility in case we get lost.”

“Well, Aumrill remembered to give us breadcrumbs at least,” Brad said with a chuckle.

“Breadcrumbs?” Jul inquired. “What do you mean by ’breadcrumbs?”

“That is old Earth terminology,” Donna clarified. “It means that you brought something with you that will help you replace your way back from a journey.”

“It works pretty well as long as the pigeons don’t eat your markers,” Brad added with another chuckle.

“Now,” Richard continued, “these notepads may also be used to attach and send notes to any of the other notepads. You can do this by touching the word ‘note’ on the screen then type in the person’s name that you are sending the note to. You will also notice the number pad for making calculations.”

“I’m surprised it doesn’t come with a shaving kit,” Simon mused while stroking his blonde curly beard.

“I was wondering if it might have a built in GPS.” Dave thoughtfully queried.

“As a matter of fact it does,” Richard answered quickly. “And a homing device that Julia can monitor from the control room.”

“I want everyone to keep these devices in their satchels at all times. We will dispatch data to Julia and she will record them in our mission log.”

“Are there any questions before we call this meeting closed?”

“Yes, when do we eat? I’m starved,” Brad said. “And will this be breakfast or dinner?”

“I haven’t really had time to think about it,” Jul responded. “But since we’ve already had breakfast and lunch I think we should call it dinner. After all we are pretending night is day.”

“Thank you dear,” Richard acknowledged, “you’ve been paying attention.”