Jump to content

[AAR] The Grand Tour - Voyage To The Planets

czokletmuss

By czokletmuss
in KSP Fan Works

 Share

Recommended Posts

PwnedDuck

PwnedDuck

Posted
Posted
I don't think that orbit looks good for stranded Sid. I still hoping he gets picked up, but I have no idea how.

Jeb Flies the Proteus so fast that it goes back in time and they stop Bill and Gennanand from getting shot down and refuel the Laythe lander using the fuel meant for that and go back down to pick up Sid.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
silentdragon

silentdragon

Posted
Posted
Jeb Flies the Proteus so fast that it goes back in time and they stop Bill and Gennanand from getting shot down and refuel the Laythe lander using the fuel meant for that and go back down to pick up Sid.

As awesome as this sounds, it makes absolutely no sense. :P:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Marksius

Marksius

Posted
Posted

I have started reading your writing last Friday and I am just amazed. Nothing in quite a while kept me on the edge of my seat like your story. :D

Got one question though, is there a certain release schedule you follow? Can't wait till the new chapter!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
czokletmuss

czokletmuss

Posted
  • Author
Posted
I have started reading your writing last Friday and I am just amazed. Nothing in quite a while kept me on the edge of my seat like your story. :D

Got one question though, is there a certain release schedule you follow? Can't wait till the new chapter!

Thank you very much, I appreciate it and I'm glad you like the story :)

Surprisingly yes, there are three rules:

1. No ETA (estimated time of arrival/release)

2. I write when I feel like writing and when I have time (there are no problems with the first one - unless I got flu or something - but sometimes there are problems with the second one)

3. Every rule may change without advance notice

So in practice no, there are no rules :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites
czokletmuss

czokletmuss

Posted
  • Author
Posted
i know i am in violation of #2 but i am really nervous about it so can you post it Sooner then tomorrow?

Nope. I'll post it as soon as it's ready. Which is not today, unfortunately :( On the other hand, if you want to support my writing you are welcome to do this:

yEdh07v.jpg

SoonerTM you mean, right?

He should, that's for sure! :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
czokletmuss

czokletmuss

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

yEdh07v.jpg

CHAPTER 57

EVENT HORIZON

ucDO28Z.jpg

***

Commander's log, entry 101 (12 days after deactivation).

A long time has passed since my last entry. A lot has changed. Those days before our arrival in the Jool system seem so surrealistic right now, yet the memory of them is so bizarrely sharp. I remember spending days staring at the stars, tiny specks of light suspended in darkness. I was in the darkness too. I was trying to concentrate on them but all I could really see was my reflection in a window. Funny, just to think about this – all that separates the infinite abyss outside the spacecraft and delicate beings trapped inside is just a few centimeters of transparent borosilicate glass. Few centimeters between warm breath and irradiated void. It doesn't take much to imagine this pathetic barrier shatter, to feel the saliva boiling on one's tongue, desperate heart trying to push the blood through the veins. Truly it takes a madman to accept living in such conditions for months, isolated. Trapped. But, ironically, the freedom is always there, just a few centimeters from you. All that separates you from it is your faith in whatever you claim to be valuable, to be important. Once this is lost, it don't take much. The boundary is fragile. And the eternal serenity of darkness is tempting. Even tantalizing.

I'm afraid one day I won't be able to resist it's calling.

UzjUFqC.jpg

So far there weren't any unexpected problems besides occasional malfunctions in various subsystems, but I guess we have to get used to this now when we're on our own. We should start the mining operations soon now that Danrey and Mallock are with us again. Rendez-vous with LAMGML “Alfa†was completely successful and the lander is in a good condition, despite of what was expected. Unfortunately they were forced to abandon the Crew Habitation Module during the orbit insertion burn – their calculations of delta-v needed to perform this maneuver were significantly off.

jHCS5Fe.jpg

But even with them safely returning, the morale is still on a disastrously low level. Not that this is a surprise for me or anyone else. We've lost so much so quickly during the last two weeks. First there was what happened on Bop, then Neil. Good Kod, Bill is probably... no, I can't write about this. I just can't, every time I try it's And Rozer is still on the edge, despite Cambo's best efforts. The thought that another one of us may join them at any moment is just unbearable. After what happened on Laythe Ned is just a mess. What worries me the most is that he even stopped denying this. He's not even angry anymore, he just floats there in his sleep compartment, taking stress pills like candies. Even when we have some technical problems and we do have tons of them every day, he just shows up, helps us and than goes back to his quarter without saying a damn word.

8jQjPvK.jpg

The others are taking this hard too. Cambo at least has patient to take care of, but Johndon is just functioning like a robot, showing no emotions. He's saying everything in this terrifying monotone voice and yet he looks like he was about to burst into tears at any moment. For me the worst thing since we left Laythe's orbit so far was meeting with Danrey and Mallock after the docking was completed. This look on their faces... They need someone strong now, a good leader who would help them cope with all this – and I barely find the strength to wake up and keep going. Every time I see Laythe through the window I can't help myself but to think about him. Even if he's rationing the food, it won't take long before he runs out of supplies. Dear Kod, the helplessness... it's bad already as it is, but it's the helplessness which is turning this nightmare into a real hell. He's dying slowly with every passing day and there's nothing we can do about it.

There's nothing we can do.

gBpQZOM.jpg

Commander's log, entry 102 (19 days after deactivation).

We finally prepared everything for the mining operations. Thank Kod we still have Johndon – without his expertise in robotics it could take even longer and it already took a few days of hard work to get everything to work. Being busy and being useful seems to be helping everyone, especially Johndon. He even suggested that we use the probe lost during the deactivation and with Tylo's powerful Oberth effect take it to a high orbit over Jool to do more science. Of course, gathering data is the last thing anyone of us care about these days, including Johndon. He just wants to save at least the probe but he knows that it won't change anything at all – it's just desperation talking through him. He knows that I know this but I agreed: after all it won't hurt to send a probe on a higher orbit. It's not like we're going to need it anyways.

I3ATkZZ.jpg

Commander's log, entry 103 (28 days after deactivation).

It's done - the “Proteus†is completely refueled. We didn't mine only pockets of kethane - we used the water ice to make more oxium and potable water for us and for the life support system. So far it's been working flawlessly but without Neil to oversee it may still cause troubles.

cOJ58SE.jpg

We still haven't decided yet what should we do next. We agreed however that keeping AMU here in orbit is a bad idea. The environment is much more forgiving than this cursed radiation inferno with Laythe in the eye of the storm but Vall is still receiving enough from Jool to damage the electronics in the long run. We've already have two more severe malfunctions and one small fire in the service module. So we decided that the best thing to do would be to refuel Payload C booster completely and use it to take AMU from here to a higher and safer orbit above Tylo's.

FjhZujV.jpg

It was necessary to use the Payload for this – AMU was not designed to travel so far and it would run out of fuel before reaching its goal. And whatever we do next, we are going to need the fuel and supplies provided by the miner unit. We do have decide quickly, however – transfer windows won't wait for us indefinitely.

bZYPMXW.jpg

Commander's log, entry 104 (36 days after deactivation).

We have three options: continue the mission and execute transfer to Eeloo, abort the mission and return to Kerbin or abort the mission but instead of Kerbin go to Duna. The first option is unthinkable – even if we wanted to, we are unable to continue. This leaves us with two real options. But to abandon my crew members on Duna is equally impossible to do as pushing forward to Eeloo is, at least for me. I honestly don't know what the others think about this – it feels like all that happened recently happened yesterday. It's too soon to just gather everyone and have a conversation about this but may be too late when we finally do this with transfer window to Kerbin closing in several weeks. I don't even think we should decide about this together. It's too important. To think that there may be even more death if we choose wrong... No, we can't do this. I have to try to save them. With long range comms dead I can't even check whether KSC sent them any help. And what if we're the only ones who received the distress signal? This is a risk I simply can't take.

But going to Duna isn't that easy. We don't have to worry about the supplies but the longer the journey, the bigger the chances of some catastrophic malfunction. Every time we're going to use the engines there is a risk of a critical core instability and even Ned can't do anything but to minimalize it. And the transfer window to Duna opens in more than 6 months – if the calculations are correct. The emergency main system of “Proteus†wasn't designed for interplanetary travel or operations in deep space, so we need to triple-check everything it feeds us with concerning orbital mechanics. Direct transfer would take no less than 493 days, plus/minus a month or two. I'm not sure whether we can take it. I'm not sure whether “Proteus†can take it – I don't even think the aerobraking is a viable option now. Orbit insertion burn, than circularization, rendez-vous with Duna Station and than transfer burn to Kerbin and another orbit insertion burn several months later. Good Kod, it could be a separate mission on its own, with fresh crew and brand new spacecraft and still it would be very demanding. And that's not even taking into account delta-v; getting to low Duna orbit would take 3000 meters per second at least. Than if AMU fails we may run out of fuel of supplies before we even execute the transfer burn to Kerbin. But if we go directly to home, all crew members we left there – Patlie, Jedgel, Fertop, Corald – may be gone without our help. Either way, I'm putting the crew in danger.

What should I do? What the frak should I do?

saKh5SA.jpg

Commander's log, entry 105 (41 days after deactivation).

He woke up.

***

JEB: Rozer.

ROZER: …

JEB: Wake up.

ROZER: Mhm... doctor, I- what the hell are you doing here?! :coughs:

JEB: We need to talk.

ROZER: Where's doctor Cambo? Doctor!

JEB: We are alone now, Rozer. I wanted to talk with you in private.

ROZER: ...

JEB: What really happened on Laythe, Rozer?

ROZER: I told you already.

JEB: You didn't tell anything, not to me. You are going to tell me now.

ROZER: …

JEB: You better start talking.

ROZER: About what? We didn't have enough delta-v to make it to orbit, the landing used too much fuel. The LAV :coughs: the LAV wasn't able to take both of us.

JEB: Convenient.

ROZER: It's true. I've spent days trying to figure out optimal ascent profile, we threw away every single piece of non-critical equipment to lower the weight of the LAV. :coughs: Even the life support system wasn't working. I had to rely on my EMU to keep me alive.

JEB: So you realized that one of you is not going back. And then Sid... and then Sid volunteered to be left behind. To save you and the samples, am I right?

ROZER: …

JEB: Answer me.

ROZER: He... he sacrificed himself. But not for me. He did it for the mission and for everything that depends on it.

JEB: …

ROZER: He didn't have choice, not really. :coughs: It was the only rational thing to do. It was the right thing to do.

JEB: He said that?

ROZER: …

JEB: Some of us think that it's not what happened. Some think this story of yours is just a cover up. Some think you make him stay there.

ROZER: You mean Ned? :coughs: He's a good engineer but he always had anger management issues. :coughs: I don't think-

JEB: Sid was – is my friend. We went through hell together, he and me. And Ned, all of us on board “Kadmosâ€Â. And now he's on the surface of Laythe, with no means of getting out of this damn mun.

ROZER: …

JEB: You realize that all we have left is one LAMGML and it's without a heatshield and with not sufficient acceleration to get out of the Laythe's gravity well. You know that we are not going to help him because we can't. I would do anything – anything – to save him. But there's nothing we can do about it. Nothing.

ROZER: Listen-

JEB: So let me get this perfectly clear. If you are indeed lying about this and you did leave him there for certain death... if you murdered him...

ROZER: Than what? You are going to throw me out of the airlock?

JEB: Maybe.

ROZER: You wouldn't- don't touch me!

JEB: Look me in the eyes, Rozer. Look me in the eyes and tell me you didn't do it.

ROZER: Are you crazy? What-

JEB: Look me in the eyes.

ROZER: …

JEB: In the eyes I said! Tell me you didn't do it, Rozer. Tell me it wasn't you who forced him to stay there, that it was his choice, not yours.

ROZER: …

JEB: I want to believe you, I really do. So if what you are saying is true just tell me. Tell me “it was his decision, Jebâ€Â.

ROZER: …

JEB: Tell me, Rozer. Just tell me.

ROZER: Jeb-

JEB: Yes, go on.

ROZER: It... there wasn't any other way... I had to-

JEB: YOU MOTHERFRAKER!

ROZER: Argh!

JEB: You did it! YOU DID IT!

ROZER: :choking:

JEB: You fraking did it! You MURDERED HIM!

ROZER: Don't... argh... :choking:

JEB: Name one reason for which I shouldn't just strangle you with my bare hands, you murderous piece of ****!

ROZER: You... aren't... :choking:

JEB: Louder, you fraking sociopath!

ROZER: a... killer... :choking: you can't... just...

JEB: And what do you know about this?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT I'VE BEEN THROUGH!? Killing you would be the best things to happen to me and the crew in MONTHS!

ROZER: :choking:

JEB: What do you say for this, you bloody murderer? No more witty retorts? No more arguments? No comeback?

ROZER: Argh... please... :choking:

JEB: That's all you have? To beg like a dog for you pathetic life after all you've done?!

ROZER: :choking:

JEB: All it takes is for me to grip a little harder and you'll pass out. But I won't give you an easy death, just like you didn't give it to Sid, you piece of ****!

ROZER: :choking:

JEB: So is there anything you want to say before I snap your fraking neck? Huh?!

ROZER: It's... it's all... :choking:

JEB: Are you going to apologize? It's too late for this now!

ROZER: Your... your… :choking:

JEB: Yeah, my what?!

ROZER: :choking:

JEB: What, you motherfraker?!

ROZER: …fault... :choking:

RCVgwO5.jpg

:Jeb releases the grip:

ROZER: Ahh! :gasps:

JEB: What did you say.

ROZER: It's all your fault! :gasps: It's all because of you!

JEB: …

ROZER: :coughs up blood: Everything was going perfectly fine before you decided to rebel against me!

JEB: Fine?

ROZER: Bob knew what he was doing and Orsen :coughs: It was an accident. But it was because of you and your little mutiny BERTY went rogue in the first place!

JEB: …

ROZER: It was because of your meddling the AI was even able to think about breaking the rules. Zeroth Law and all this crap, all of this because of you! :coughs: And even after you imprisoned me for months I was helping you to come up with a plan to neutralize BERTY. Don't you remember? I said the only way to do this was to deactivate him – but you decided not to! And then you did it anyway!

JEB: …

ROZER: BERTY could've been deactivated months before we even entered the Jool system and NOTHING of this would have happened! You hear me? Nothing! Everyone will be still alive and we would be able to complete the fraking mission like we ought to!

JEB: …

ROZER: But you just couldn't comply, could you? Great Jebediah Kerman, first to set a foot on the Mun, commander and kerbonaut. You never thought that you are bound by the rules! They were for the others, for the lesser beings, but to control you, the hero of Kerbin who always knew what's the best for everyone?

JEB: I-

ROZER: SHUT THE FRAK UP! You are the cause of every misery which happened during this mission. :coughs: You are the cause of every death! And more precisely, your pride is! Your damned pride and stubbornness and holier-than-thou cowboy attitude! It's was never BERTY or the KSC who were leading us to disaster after disaster – it was your fraking flawed character, your fraking ego! And yet to still keep floating around, brooding and contemplating about how much suffering you are going through. Cry me a fraking river!

JEB: …

ROZER: Do you honestly think I wanted to do this?! I did what I must to protect the mission and the crew – from you! And I'm going to do this no matter what madness you are going to indulge in. I should have done it long ago! So if you are going to kill another crew member, go ahead! Just go ahead and do it but know this – without me and BERTY you all are going to die. They don't stand a chance with a delusional wreck like you telling them what to do.

JEB: R-

ROZER: Do it or get the hell out of here!

JEB: …

ROZER: Figures.

70uSUP1.jpg

Commander's log, entry 106 (43 days after deactivation).

It's decided – we are going to Duna. But not directly. The transfer window opens in more than 160 days, too long to just wait here in the Jool's lethal radiation. First we have to go to a higher orbit, way above Tylo's, and there we will wait for the transfer window to open. But not for Duna – for Eve.

Eve flyby is going to save us almost two months. This gives bigger chances for us and for the crew on Duna. The delta-v needed for the burn is practically the same. The AMU will wait here for the normal transfer window to open and than it will rendezvous with us in the low Duna orbit. By the time it arrives we should be ready to just refuel and execute transfer burn to Kerbin. This is the best option we have. Not everyone agrees with me unfortunately – but this is what we are going to do. I can't let them die. I can't. I just can't.

hGhoyOw.jpg

Commander's log, entry 107 (65 days after deactivation).

Today we are executing the transfer burn to Eve. By now everyone has accepted what we're going to do. I gave them access to all the classified files which BERTY was hiding from us. I myself was quite shocked when I first read about the Second Source on Vall. But we won't send a lander to it, nobody is going to land on it and explore whatever is there near it's south pole. This is not our task anymore. This is now a rescue mission. There are lives that can still be saved from this nightmare. I won't let them down, not like Bill. Not like Sid.

6bGITxg.jpg

Today is almost exactly two months since Laythe. Rationing the food or not... it's going to be over soon. My Kod, how much I would give to at least be able to talk with you. To let you know that you are not alone. That we all are thinking about you. If there was anything we can do, anything... But we don't have a heatshield and the comms are dead.

POVbhR4.jpg

Maybe he is right after all. Maybe none of it would have happened if it wasn't for me. Maybe that's the reality I just don't want to face.

sROpQab.jpg

But no matter what the truth is, there's still something I have to do. To get all of them back. To not let all of this fall apart, not after all we've been through.

iABP6E4.jpg

If I succeed at this, than I will prove that all of this, all we worked so hard for, wasn't in vain. That their sacrifice weren't in vein. That there was some reason for which we did what we did.

HmnpDsz.jpg

Assuming the transfer burn is going to be successful, we are going to leave Jool's SOI in two weeks. Than it will take us almost a year before we reach our goal. As I write these words and I look at small disk of Laythe, I want you to know about this, Sid. Where are you going, there is no more pain. Only serenity. I try to find a relief in this.

But remember this, friend – sooner or later, we're going to meet. And when this happen, nothing will ever separate us.

2WS0ZSL.jpg

***

yEdh07v.jpg

MISSION STATUS

***

Sr3nO0N.png

Edited by czokletmuss
Link to comment
Share on other sites
This thread is quite old. Please consider starting a new thread rather than reviving this one.

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...