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The Venturer Program: Mission one

RogueMason

By RogueMason
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RogueMason

RogueMason

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Alright, update: Next chapter is ready to go, but the chapter after that is not. I also go back into college tomorrow, so time is looking to be at a bit of a premium at the moment. Therefore, I'm not sure when the next chapter will be coming about. I'll try for later today, but no guarantees :rolleyes:

In the meantime, a picture that is not related to the story. Feast your eyes:

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RogueMason

RogueMason

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I like this story, hope it doesn't end lke the AAR to jool and back...

Wait, my Jool story, or czokletmuss' Jool story? That said, they both ended with their hiccups; czokletmuss killed some guys, and I murdered the seat warmers...

Hmm. No, whichever Jool story you're talking about, this one will not have a similar ending. I have quite in interesting idea in mind...

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RogueMason

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CHAPTER 11: THE DESOLATION OF IKE

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Luner: “Looks mighty fine out there.â€Â

Rodbald: “And I thought Duna was desolate…â€Â

Luner: “Yeah, Ike is a bit of an odd place, the whole colour-change-thing aside.â€Â

Buzz: “You guys all ready?â€Â

Luner: “Suited up and waiting.â€Â

Rodbald: “Standing by.â€Â

Buzz: “Ok, here I go.â€Â

Buzz opens the hatch and is faced with a bleak landscape. He carefully makes his way down the ladder and eventually reaches the rocky surface.

Buzz: “Alright, I’m on the ground now. It certainly has a very alien feeling to it.â€Â

Luner: “And to think that a lot of people back home think this place is a lot like our own Mun…â€Â

Buzz: “Can’t say I blame them, they’ve never been here.â€Â

Luner: “Are we good to come out?â€Â

Buzz: “Umm, yeah.â€Â

Luner: “Ok. Rodbald, you go first.â€Â

Rodbald: “Oh, umm, ok then…â€Â

Rodbald and Luner emerge from the side of the lander, eventually reaching the footsteps that Buzz left behind. Rodbald makes a leap to test the microgravity while Luner looks around at the landscape rather solemnly.

Luner: “It really is quite unusual…â€Â

Buzz: “Come on, let’s get this flag planted and then we can get on with a few experiments. We don’t have long down here; the transfer window back to Kerbin is in just over a week.â€Â

Luner: “Yes, yes, of course.â€Â

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Rodbald: “I wonder…â€Â

Buzz: “You wonder what--- wait, WHAT?!â€Â

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Buzz: “Damn it Rodbald, get down!â€Â

Rodbald: “I was only seeing if the gravity was strong enough here to make me heavy enough to break this thing. Clearly it isn’t…â€Â

Luner: “Get off that thing before you hurt yourself, you fool.â€Â

Rodbald: “Oh, alright then.â€Â

Half-heartedly, Rodbald leaps off the top bar of the flag. He then proceeds to kick up a bit of dust to ex-pose some bedrock.

Rodbald: “Hey, Luner? Is this a decent spot for the core drill?â€Â

Luner: “Yeah, that should be just fine. Buzz, do you want to get some of this equipment out of the lander?â€Â

Buzz: “Sure.â€Â

The landing team remains on the surface for the next two days, exploring the immediate vicinity around the lander.

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Buzz: “We have liftoff, Venturer. ETA 1 hour and 30 minutes.â€Â

Kirlin: “Copy that. Hope you guys had a good time down there.â€Â

Luner: “As good as we could manage. We picked out a rather dull area, unfortunately, but nevertheless, we have some good data.â€Â

Kirlin: “Good to hear. We can evaluate it back up here. I’ll see you guys soon.â€Â

Buzz: “That you will.â€Â

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11/2 hours later…

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The lander docks successfully, and the crew transfer over all the equipment, data, and samples gathered from Ike before finally jettisoning the lander.

Buzz: “A waste, if you ask me, leaving that lander behind.â€Â

Luner: “If you ask me, that thing was over-engineered, and actually wasn’t very reliable for Duna. It may have had the thrust, but had we not transferred the fuel from the habitation and rover modules into the lander tank, we’d still be on Duna.â€Â

Kirlin: “Not that it matters what either of you think, we need to make sure that we aren’t carrying any dead weight with us, to maximise fuel usage.â€Â

Buzz: “We have more than enough fuel to get back to Kerbin. We could keep that lander and we’d still reach home safely.â€Â

Kirlin: “It’s a bit too late for that now though, isn’t it?â€Â

Buzz: “Hmm…â€Â

30 minutes later…

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Rodbald: “There, burn complete, we are now heading back for Duna orbit.â€Â

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RogueMason

RogueMason

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Also, is it me, or is this chock-a-block full of references?

With the other Mason stories, we got things like Star Trek, now he's going for the Desolation of Smaug Ike!

:sticktongue:

I'll be honest, I wasn't thinking of The Hobbit at all when making up that title. However, I do obviously put little references in here and there :)

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RogueMason

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CHAPTER 12: THE HOMEWARD BOUND

One week later…

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Mission Commanders Log, entry 20: We’re heading home. After about 4 months around the Red planet, we’re finally going home. This is the final leg of the mission, and I’m both relieved and longing. The relief is because I know that, in about 3 months, I’ll be splashing back down in the friendly oceans of home, but I’m longing for the solitude and tranquillity of Duna. We only left its surface just over a week ago… a week, and it feels like an age. I don’t know what to think. It’s been the most exhilarating time of my life, that’s for sure. Nothing will ever compare to it.

Nothing. I doubt that I’ll be heading back out into interplanetary space any time soon, anyway. Maybe I’ll submit my candidacy for that new Minmus base they’re planning…

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3 months later…

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Rodbald: “Ah, frak. Buzz? Get over here, quickly.â€Â

Buzz emerges from the rear of the ship, snack in hand.

Buzz: “Let me guess, the trajectory’s off a bit?â€Â

Rodbald: “More than a bit, mate. I don’t know where we went wrong, but we’re going to have to fix this now.â€Â

Buzz: “Let me see… mother of Kerbin, we’re... we're way off! Plot a new course, Rodbald. The rest of you, we’re going to perform a major course correction, so get strapped in.â€Â

Edory: “A major course correction? Sounds worrying for our fuel…â€Â

Luner: “Fuel levels should be adequate, although I can’t say for sure until I see just how long this burn will be.â€Â

Kirlin: “How far off course are we?â€Â

Rodbald: “Periapsis is currently at 27000km above Kerbin. We’ll fly straight between Mun and Minmus at this rate, and then back off into interplanetary space, and let me tell you, I do not want that to happen!â€Â

Kirlin: “Didn’t we perform all the calculations correctly?â€Â

Buzz: “Yes, we did, but maybe the computer didn’t. Hard to say at the moment, but we need to get on an aerobraking trajectory, and fast. Now, is everybody strapped in?â€Â

Kirlin: “I’m good to go.â€Â

Rodbald: “All set.â€Â

Luner: “Edory and I are sorted.â€Â

Buzz: “Right, here we go. Rodbald, tell me when we’re good to cut the engines.â€Â

Rodbald: “Aye.â€Â

Buzz throttles up and the nuclear engines flare into life once more. Computer alarms start to indicate that the ship is off course.

Buzz: “Oh shut up, you stupid things, you aren’t even working!â€Â

Luner: “Hold on, I’ll try and find the override toggle.â€Â

Buzz: “As long as you don’t send us flying bliâ€â€Ã¢â‚¬Å“

With the throw of a toggle switch, both the alarms and the computer shut down. Luner suddenly goes very pale and wide-eyed.

Buzz: “…Blind. Ok, what happened?â€Â

Luner: “I… I don’t know! I toggled the alarm override and then… oh frak!â€Â

Buzz: “Can you get it back?â€Â

Luner: “I think… yes, I should be able to. Edory, can I just get into that compartment?â€Â

Edory: “Ok…â€Â

Rodbald: “Better be quick about it. I estimate about two minutes until engine cut-off, but I won’t know if we’re on track until that computer is back.â€Â

Luner: “Got it. Right, here’s a trick I learnt from reading about Odysseus.â€Â

Buzz: “Oh no, don’t cut the seat warmers!â€Â

Luner: “I don’t need to, but I’m going to temporarily tie the computer power-up into the circuit for the engines, seeing as they are active.â€Â

Edory: “Careful with the cables, they’ve got a big current flowing through them.â€Â

Luner: “I know, I know… Stand back, just in case.â€Â

Kirlin: “If you overload the circuit, you run the risk of blowing a hole in the side of the ship!â€Â

Luner: “I know, alright, I’m an engineer!â€Â

Carefully, Luner takes the spare wires from the compartment he was searching, and links them between the engine cables and the main computer start-up circuit. Suddenly, monitors and lights blink back to life while a reassuring hum resonates throughout the cabin.

Rodbald: “Oh, thank Kerbin for that…â€Â

Buzz: “I’ve got some telemetry. Rodbald?â€Â

Rodbald: “Hold on… 5 more seconds.â€Â

Kirlin: “Well, that was close.â€Â

Buzz: “Too right.â€Â

Rodbald: “… And stop.â€Â

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Rodbald: “34km periapsis. We’ll make Kerbin orbit.â€Â

Buzz: “Phew…â€Â

Luner: “I am so sorry about that, Buzz. I have no idea what happened.â€Â

Buzz: “Well, why don’t we have a look? Scan every system, I don’t want a detail missed. It seems too con-venient that this should happen right now as we’re approaching home…â€Â

Kirlin: “It does seem rather curious.â€Â

Luner: “And for the record, I promise you it wasn’t anything to do with my government role, which I am going to complete disavow when I get back.â€Â

Buzz: “Good to hear. Now then, let’s get searching…â€Â

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Several hours later…

Kirlin: “My… we’re really back. Kerbin. Home.â€Â

Buzz: “You sound relieved, I think. You ok?â€Â

Kirlin: “I’ve never looked at Kerbin this way before. There are no borders from up here, no conflicts, no global issues, just… peace.â€Â

Buzz: “I am talking to the same Kirlin we started this mission with, right? You didn’t receive a software up-grade or anything?â€Â

Kirlin: “Heh… yes, I’m still here, but I think I’ve been hit by that, err… what’s it called?â€Â

Buzz: “The Overview Effect?â€Â

Kirlin: “That will be it, yes. And to think, 10 months ago, I wouldn’t have been thinking about this. I guess isolation from all the troubles of this unique planet have given me the opportunity for a fresh look on my home. Now, I see nothing but the need to conserve it, and alongside our expansion back into space, we’ll be ready for anything.â€Â

Buzz: “That we will, Kirlin. In fact, I’m pretty certain that the rest of the Venturer program is going to go ahead now, despite the reluctance of the government. It’s just been too successful a mission to say no.â€Â

Kirlin: “I guess that remains to be seen, then. Personally, I hope the program continues.â€Â

Buzz: “Hmm.â€Â

With that, Luner and Rodbald float into the cabin, several sheets of paper and a datapad accompanying them.

Buzz: “So, you finished up on those findings?â€Â

Luner: “Oh yes. They are not going to know what hit them.â€Â

Buzz: “Excellent work. Those bastards are gonna get what they deserve.â€Â

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RogueMason

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EPILOGUE

One week after Venturer returned from its triumphant 10-month mission to Duna, the entire crew plus the senior members of both the space centre and MSI are confronting the head honcho of the government.

President Krumer: “You can’t seriously expect me to assume responsibility for a computer glitch on your spacecraft. I was down here, on the surface of the planet, just in case you had failed to notice that.â€Â

Gene: “Mr. President, you cannot deny the facts, the evidence! The crew worked their asses off to figure out what the hell happened up there!â€Â

Buzz: “Gene, it’s alright, there is no need to shout. Not just yet, anyway.â€Â

Gene: “There’s a lot of pent up anger waiting to be blown on something worthwhile, Buzz.â€Â

Buzz: “I’m sure you can hold onto that for just a few more minutes.â€Â

Kirlin: “Mr. President, please take a few moments to just read over the details that we collected. You’ll see that there was nothing else that could have caused this.â€Â

Kirlin nudges the folder in the direction of the estranged man, who reluctantly, with the eyes of everyone in the room settled on him, pulls it close to him. Slipping his glasses out of his chest pocket and sliding them over his eyes, he begins to read the report.

Krumer: “Oh, really, you think this is the case? You think that I would just order my spec ops department to beam a signal to your ship that would shut your computer down whenever you went to alter your trajectory from that which would keep you from coming home? For what?â€Â

Luner: “For what? The implications that would follow from an inability to alter the trajectory. Venturer, and all aboard, would orbit back out into interplanetary space, with no hope of surviving on the remaining supplies. Provided nobody found out that you'd beamed a signal, it would have been the perfect fuel for the government to cease all manned interplanetary flight, for whatever reasons they may have had.â€Â

Krumer: “Oh, and you’re on their… no, never mind.â€Â

Gene: “Mr. President, do tell. What were you going to say?â€Â

Krumer: “Nothing. I have nothing more to say to you. I’ll have this incident investigated, if it means that much to you, but I want you out, now!â€Â

Kirlin: “We aren’t leaving until you give us the answers we deserve.â€Â

The entirety of the space team stand their ground while the President gets up from his chair impatiently, heading for the intercom.

Krumer: “Could I get a few guards down here to show the space squad out, please?â€Â

Rodbald and Edory mutter to themselves.

Rodbald: “Space squad?â€Â

Edory: “Not in the foggiest.â€Â

Rodbald: “Hmm…â€Â

Buzz: “It doesn’t matter, guys.â€Â

Rodbald: “We’re the pioneers of the Venturer program, and he calls us a space squad. I wouldn’t say it doesn’t matter.â€Â

Buzz: “Nevertheless, keep your heads screwed on.â€Â

Luner: “Krumer, you’re in way over your head here. Admit it, you’re at fault.â€Â

Krumer: “I am not responsible for this!â€Â

Rodbald: “Oooh, sounds like you’re getting a bit desperate there, Mr. President. You sure you’re not keeping anything from us, like, oh, I don’t know… the fact that you want the space program dead, just so you can keep your wallet safe?!â€Â

Krumer: “I will not have you people stand here and insult me and my reputation! Please, leave, or so help me…â€Â

Luner: “Or what, Krumer? You’ll get Firespitter Company on us?â€Â

Krumer: “Firespitter? What the frak do you think we’d be doing with those thugs?â€Â

Luner: “Oh, very convincing, Krumer, but you can’t fool me. I saw your guards. I'd recognise their uniforms anywhere.â€Â

Krumer: “I don’t even know what you’reâ€â€Ã¢â‚¬Å“

Luner: “It’s over, Krumer. This whole conversation we’ve had? Recorded with this little camera in my pocket, here. I think I may just go and take this to the attention of the police and the media. What a field day they’ll have, eh?â€Â

Krumer: “What…?â€Â

Luner: “Game over, basically.â€Â

Two guards finally reach the office, Firespitter logos clearly emblazoned on their left shoulders.

Rodbald: “Holy…â€Â

Buzz: “Nice detective work, Luner.â€Â

Kirlin: “Indeed, most impressive.â€Â

Krumer: “Don’t think that you’ll get away with this, Gene! You’ll never succeed!â€Â

Gene: “With this evidence? Noooo, I can’t imagine I will. Come on guys, let’s get out of here.â€Â

The group leave the office of the President, pushing past the two Firespitter men who merely stood either side of the walkway, confused as to what just happened.

Luner: “We need to get this information out as quickly as possible. Once it starts circulating, there’s no way Krumer’s government is going to survive. They’ll be ousted before the end of the month.â€Â

Gene: “Good riddance, for when it comes about.â€Â

Kirlin: “I never did like them. I’m also now I’m having to tell myself that nothing I tried to enforce on the mission made a blind bit of difference; the outcome would have been the same.â€Â

Buzz: “Hey, you’re a great leader, and when you aren’t so damn robotic, you’re a good man. I’ve never been happier to serve alongside someone than I have been with you.â€Â

Kirlin: “Hmm, I suppose I did hold us together…â€Â

Buzz: “Ha, sure.â€Â

Rodbald: “I still can’t believe Luner was the spy and not you, Kirlin.â€Â

Kirlin: “I’d have thought the same if I were in your shoes.â€Â

Luner: “I’m surprised I got as far as I did without anybody cottoning on. I wonder how much longer I could have kept it up...?â€Â

Buzz: “Probably indefinitely. You were very good.â€Â

Luner: “Had to be. Anything suspicious and the show would have been over. I wasn’t going to let that happen.â€Â

Kirlin: “A valiant effort. I say you should be commended.â€Â

Gene: “Perhaps you’ll all be commended. You’ll definitely get your recognition for the mission, that’s guaranteed, but for uncovering this corruption? I’d say you guys are heroes.â€Â

Rodbald: “Heroes, huh?â€Â

Edory: “Cool.â€Â

Buzz: “I’d hardly call it heroic, storming into the office of the President.â€Â

Gene: “Well, whatever you’d call it, you’ve done well here today. Now, come on, we have work to do.â€Â

------------------------------

Within a week, the news was out, and the government was ousted, a new one to take the lead within the next few weeks. The first five crew of the Venturer are labelled heroes for their flight out to Duna and Ike, as well as their contribution to the ending of the corruption that had rooted itself in most of society for the last few years. The now-ousted government goes dark, and nobody hears of any activity of them for any-thing. Most people just assume they disbanded, and perhaps they are right, but the trails are inconclusive. Whatever happened, they aren’t doing anything to hinder the space program, and the Venturer Program will proceed as planned. There are several options now, and there’s no doubt that every one will be taken. After all, it’s been a decade since anybody has visited the other planets, and we want to go back out there, for that is the only way to assure our future.

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RogueMason

RogueMason

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What about Jeb for overlord? I'm actually ok with that.

Jeb? OVERLORD? AAAHHH!!! :0.0:

I know I gave him a desk at KSC, and gave him the controversial 'End Flight' button on said desk, but OVERLORD?? You're crazy!

...

Anyway, thanks for the responses guys, nice to see this went down well. I personally thought it was going a little bit dull towards the end, but at least my plot seems to have interested you. The next story in this series will not be out for a while, I should imagine, but the mission for it has long since been completed. I'm still in the middle of the third Venturer mission, having experienced some unprecedented complications, but I'll see what I can do before I get to the third story.

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